Merchant Advice Codes (MACs)
Mastercard's Merchant Advice Codes help merchants decide whether to retry a declined transaction and, if so, when. They are returned as part of the transaction response message.
Key MACs include:
- 01: Updated account information available - The merchant should check for updated account information before the next billing cycle, possibly using a service like Account Updater.
- 02: Try again later - The transaction cannot be approved at the moment, but might be approved if retried later (e.g., after 72 hours for insufficient funds).
- 03: Do not try again - The account is closed, fraudulent, or the cardholder has canceled the agreement; further retries will not be approved and may incur fees.
- 04: Token requirements not fulfilled - Indicates an issue with the token used for the transaction.
- 21: Payment cancelled - The cardholder has cancelled a recurring payment agreement.
- 24-30: Retry after X hours/days - These codes (e.g., 24 for 1 hour, 25 for 24 hours, 26 for 2 days) specifically advise waiting a certain period for temporary issues like insufficient funds.
- 40: Consumer non-reloadable prepaid card - Advises that the card is not suitable for ongoing/recurring purchases.
- 41: Consumer single-use virtual card number - Advises that the card is a single-use card not meant for recurring payments
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