Glossary

Cross-border

Transaction in which the buyer's card country differs from the country where the sale is processed, which changes the fee, risk, and approval.

A transaction is cross-border when the buyer and the recipient are in different countries. From the issuing bank's point of view, it arrives flagged as international, and that alone already increases the chance of a decline.

Three things change at once. The cost, because card networks charge an extra fee on cross-border transactions. The approval, because the issuer applies stricter fraud rules. And the experience, because the buyer may see the charge in a foreign currency and still pay IOF or a fee from their own bank.

Processing locally in the buyer's country, when possible, is what removes the international flag and recovers a good part of the lost approval.

Documentation exists so a seller never learns a rule on the day it costs them. Worth reading before you need it.
Wellington CostaGlobal Payments Specialist

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Written by Wellington Costa Global Payments Specialist

Writes about payment infrastructure, checkout conversion and chargeback reduction. Works directly with digital product sellers, affiliates and creators selling to more than 40 countries through Mundpay.