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How to Find Chargeback Reason Code Info Directly from Visa and Mastercard

May 4, 2026
By Nadia Cabrera-Mazzeo

The chargeback reason code can make all the difference when it comes to submitting the right evidence to dispute a wrongful chargeback. If you’re going at it alone and want the most accurate information, you’ll want to go straight to the source: the rules of the credit card networks. But they’re not easy to find. An internet search for “Visa chargeback reason codes” will not show immediate results directly from Visa itself.

Visa Chargeback Rules and Reason Codes

The Visa document with direct information about the chargeback dispute process and reason codes is called the Visa Core Rules and Visa Product and Service Rules. Here’s the latest versionupdated April 18, 2026. Go to Section 11 for information on dispute resolution, which covers chargebacks even though chargebacks are hardly mentioned. The chargeback reason codes begin on Section 11.7. Again, it can be confusing because they’re not called “reason codes” here, they’re called “dispute categories.” That’s because this document is meant for banks, not merchants, even though the reason code is critical for merchants.

Mastercard Rules and Reason Codes

Mastercard’s Chargeback Guide Merchant Addition is easier to find and is geared directly toward merchants but is harder to navigate than the Visa core rules. The reason codes are hidden in several places in Mastercard’s 1,153-page guide. Look in Appendix C (Domestic Chargebacks) for information on U.S. chargebacks and reason codes. Chapters 2 (Dual Message System Chargebacks) and 3 (Single Message System Chargebacks) also have information on reason codes

Chargebacks disputes are handled between the merchant’s bank (the “acquirer”) and the cardholder’s bank (the “issuer”). Card networks like Visa and Mastercard are not directly involved in chargeback disputes, at least not in the initial stages. But the card networks do set the rules for chargebacks. The fact that those rules are opaque and hard to find is one reason why merchants, especially small businesses, tend to have a lower success rate when disputing chargebacks.

Chargeback Recoup is here to take the next dispute off your plate.