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Reasons for declined transactions and what to do

Updated over 2 months ago

Sometimes, payments don’t go through as expected. Declined transactions can happen for different reasons, but the good news is most of them can be fixed quickly.

Use the table below to see the main reasons why a transaction fails and the steps you can take to resolve it.


Decline Reason

Why it Happens

Action (Admin)

Action (Team Member)

Not Sufficient Funds

Wallet doesn’t have enough balance.

Top up the company wallet.

Contact your admin to request a top-up.

Card Suspended

The card has been temporarily frozen.

Unfreeze card in the app or contact support.

Contact admin/support for help.

Transaction Limit Exceeded

Transaction amount is higher than the allowed limit.

Change the card limit in settings.

Request a limit change from your admin.

Max Amount Limit Reached

Maximum spend limit has been used.

Increase the max spend limit.

Ask admin to update your card limit.

Card Permanently Closed

The card is no longer active.

Issue a new card.

Request a new card from your admin.

Fraud Check Reject

Transaction flagged as suspicious.

If legitimate, contact support to allow. If not, freeze the card.

Same as admin — confirm with support or freeze the card.

Cardholder Not Active

Emirates ID not updated.

Ensure Emirates ID is updated in records.

Update Emirates ID in the system.

Incorrect PIN

Wrong PIN entered.

Remind user to check PIN in app.

View PIN in app and retry with correct one.

Card Expiry Mismatch

Wrong expiry date entered.

Verify expiry and retry.

Enter correct expiry details.

Security Violation (CVV Error)

Wrong CVV entered.

Remind user to use correct CVV.

Enter CVV from back of card.

Transaction Not Allowed (MCC)

Blocked Merchant Category Code.

Update MCC permissions.

Request admin to allow this MCC.

Card Not Active

Card hasn’t been activated yet.

Activate card in app.

Tap to activate card before retrying.

Country Not Allowed

Transaction blocked for that country.

Update allowed country list.

Ask admin to review restrictions.

Missing Fields

Card details entered incorrectly.

Ask user to re-check details.

Tap “View Card Details” and enter correct info.

Card Suspicious

Unusual activity detected.

Contact support immediately.

Same as admin — contact support.

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