Is American Express a payment provider, issuer, or network?

American Express operates as a card network and issuer brand; merchants typically access it through a PSP and/or acquiring bank that supports Amex acceptance.

How do I start accepting American Express cards?

Most merchants enable Amex through their PSP or acquirer settings, then confirm pricing, settlement, and reporting details for Amex transactions in the same account.

Why are American Express payments being declined?

Common causes include insufficient funds/credit, mismatched billing details, suspected fraud, unsupported merchant configuration, or issuer-side restrictions; check the specific decline code returned by your PSP.

How can I improve American Express approval rates without increasing risk?

Review Amex decline codes, reduce data-entry errors (name/address), ensure accurate AVS/CVV handling, and avoid aggressive retry patterns that can trigger additional declines.

Do I need a separate contract to accept American Express?

It depends on your PSP/acquirer; some bundle Amex acceptance, while others require enabling Amex separately or meeting additional onboarding requirements.

American Express

Cards

American Express is a global card network and issuer brand that merchants can accept for in-store and online card payments.

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Published: January 21, 2026
Last updated: May 5, 2026

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About American Express

Product Type

Payment Method

Foundation

1850

Stock ID

NYSE:AXP

Company Type

public

Employees

64,000+

Location

USA

Channel

OnlineIn person

For developers

Status page Stack Overflow

Features

Global card network acceptance

Support for American Express cards across major ecommerce, in-store, and omni-channel setups. Availability can differ by acquirer/PSP and merchant category.

Authorization outcomes and routing

Transactions are authorized through your payment platform’s Amex connectivity. Clear decline codes and response data help guide retries and customer messaging.

Approval rates and card declines visibility

Monitor Amex approval rate, soft vs hard declines, and issuer responses in your PSP logs. Use this data to tune retry rules and customer prompts.

Security and compliance alignment

Works within standard card-payment security practices, including PCI-focused handling through compliant PSPs. Tokenization and secure storage depend on your platform.

Customer authentication support

Authentication flows (where applicable) are typically managed by your PSP and checkout stack. Ensure Amex transactions use the same risk and authentication policies as other card brands.

Disputes and chargebacks handling

Chargebacks are generally managed via your acquirer/PSP with Amex-specific reason codes and timelines. Evidence requirements can vary by dispute type and region.

Operational reliability and reporting

Network processing is generally stable, with performance tracked via your PSP’s monitoring and reconciliation reports. Settlement reporting and descriptors depend on your acquirer setup.

Tip from SmartRetry If Amex declines are elevated, segment by decline reason and entry mode (ecommerce vs in-store) and review AVS/CVV and billing address quality before adjusting retry behavior.

Currencies

Processing currenciesUSD, EUR, GBP, JPY, AUD, CAD, CHF, HKD, SGD, CNY, INR

Available in

Available countries

Global

FAQ

Statuses

Statuses - All
Code	Description
ECI Codes
05	Cardholder authentication is successful (step-up or frictionless)
06	Authentication was attempted but not completed (e.g. frictionless or passive)
07	Non-authenticated e-commerce transaction
Issuer Response Codes
100	Deny
101	Expired Card / Invalid Expiration Date
106	Exceeded PIN attempts
109	Invalid merchant
110	Invalid amount
111	Invalid account
115	Requested function not supported
116	Not Sufficient Funds
117	Invalid PIN
119	Cardmember not enrolled / not permitted
120	Transaction not permitted to terminal
121	Limit Exceeded
122	Invalid card security code
125	Invalid effective date
130	Additional customer identification required
181	Format error
183	Invalid currency code
187	Deny – New card issued
189	Deny – Cancelled or Closed Merchant/SE
190	National ID Mismatch
193	Invalid Country Code
194	Invalid Region Code
200	Deny – Pick up card
201	Expired Card
202	Suspected fraud
208	Lost Card
209	Stolen Card
900	Accepted – ATC Synchronization
909	System Malfunction (Cryptographic error)
912	Issuer not available
977	Invalid Payment Plan
978	Invalid Payment Times
000	Approved
001	Approve with ID
002	PARTIAL APPROVAL (PREPAID CARDS ONLY)
3DS Transaction Status Reason
10	Stolen card
11	Suspected fraud
12	Transaction not permitted to cardholder
13	Cardholder not enrolled in service
14	Transaction timed out at the ACS
15	Low confidence
16	Medium confidence
17	High confidence
18	Very high confidence
19	Exceeds ACS maximum challenges
20	Non-payment transaction not supported
21	3RI transaction not supported
22	ACS technical issue
23	Decoupled authentication required by ACS but not requested by 3DS requestor
24	3DS requestor decoupled max expiry time exceeded
25	Decoupled Authentication was provided insufficient time to authenticate cardholder. ACS will not make attempt
26	Authentication attempted but not performed by the cardholder
27	Preferred authentication method not supported
01	Card authentication failed
02	Unknown device
03	Unsupported device
04	Exceeds authentication frequency limit
05	Expired card
06	Invalid card number
07	Invalid transaction
08	No card record
09	Security failure
3DS Transaction Status
Y	Authentication / Account Verification Successful
N	Not Authenticated / Account Not Verified; Transaction denied
U	Authentication / Account Verification Could Not Be Performed (technical or other problem)
A	Attempts Processing Performed; not authenticated/verified, but proof of attempted authentication is provided
C	Challenge Required; additional authentication required (CReq/CRes flow)
D	Decoupled authentication confirmed
R	Authentication / Account Verification Rejected; issuer requests authorization not be attempted
I	Informational only; 3DS Requestor challenge preference acknowledged
CAVV Result Codes
1	AEVV Failed – Authentication, Issuer Key
2	AEVV Passed – Authentication, Issuer Key
3	AEVV Passed – Attempt, Issuer Key
4	AEVV Failed – Attempt, Issuer Key
7	AEVV Failed – Attempt, Issuer not participating, Network Key
8	AEVV Passed – Attempt, Issuer not participating, Network Key
9	AEVV Failed – Attempt, Participating, ACS not available, Network Key
A	AEVV Passed – Attempt, Participating, ACS not available, Network Key
U	AEVV Unchecked