Surcharging

[swright]

Hello,

We're looking to implement surcharging on our payment gateway. One of the card brand requirements is to be able to identify if a card is a credit card vs debit card. We can then only surcharge on the appropriate card type.

• Is the General Attributes Inquiry API the best API for this use case?
• Does Visa have any concerns with this use case?

Thanks,
Shawn

[DianaVisaPM]

Hey @swright,

That's a good question. Per your use case on payments and surcharge, I would recommend you to take a look at Visa Direct. Please see the links below and let us know if it fits your use case.

Visa Direct Overview - https://developer.visa.com/capabilities/visa_direct

Visa Direct Docs - https://developer.visa.com/capabilities/visa_direct/docs-getting-started

Visa Direct API Reference - https://developer.visa.com/capabilities/visa_direct/reference?next=visa_direct__funds_transfer__v1__...

Here's a screenshot of where you can find information on surcharge, as well.

[swright]

Hi Diana,

Thank you for getting back so quickly! It looks like the Visa Direct API is for payments. Our payment gateway is certified to First Data so I don't think we'd use Direct. We're just looking for a way to ping Visa to get the card type attribute of debit or credit while maintaining processing through First Data.

What do you think?

[DianaVisaPM]

Hey @swright,

Can you please let us know what type of business you are? For example, are you a merchant, independent developer, acquirer bank, issuer bank, or issuer bank for small business? After you let me know I can help provide you with further assistance. 

You can also visit our API Browser page to find an API that fits your use case - https://developer.visa.com/apibrowser

[swright]

Hi Diana,

We're a wholesale ISO of First Data/Fiserv that has written and certified a payment gateway. We're a also a level 1 service provider.

Best.
Shawn

[DianaVisaPM · Accepted solution]

Hey @swright,

You had previously mentioned that you are interested in using the Payment Account Attributes Inquiry (PAAI) General Attributes Inquiry API. The General Attributes Inquiry API provides easy access to an array of general payment account attributes, such as product ID, product name, card type, and issuer information. Therefore, this would be a good fit for your use case, however, please note that this PAAI is only available for use by acquirer banks. 

To search for APIs that are available for your business type, you can also use the Filter By feature on our API Browser page here - https://developer.visa.com/apibrowser

[swright]

Thank you, Diana. Of the available options, we would fit in the acquirer box.

[DianaVisaPM]

Hey @swright,

That's great, that your company type is acquirer. That being said, I recommend you to use Payment Account Attributes Inquiry (PAAI) General Attributes Inquiry API. To get started with sandbox testing and then moving your project into Production, please follow the Working with Visa APIs guide here - https://developer.visa.com/pages/working-with-visa-apis