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Billing descriptors

A billing descriptor is the line of text that appears on a consumer's credit card or bank statement. It allows the consumer to identify the specific merchant associated with a particular transaction.

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Note

Using clear and accurate billing descriptors can reduce chargebacks and disputes. Banks and card schemes require specific types of information in the form of descriptors that help customers identify statement charges.

At Reach, we often act as the merchant of record (MoR). This means we take the flash title of the goods sold to your end consumer. The advantage of this MoR model is that merchants can access local acquiring and payment methods when they don't have a local entity in these markets. This leads to higher approval rates, lower fees, and eliminates foreign transaction fees for the cardholder. Read more about our MOR model here.

As a MoR, you must mention us in the descriptor. When we are mentioned in the descriptor, you and your customers will see "GIP" or "RCH" preceding your merchant name in the descriptor field. At times, a consumer may see "Reach" on their statement (or our previous name, "GoInterpay").

Descriptors can contain multiple elements, but Reach uses the dynamic descriptor functionality. Dynamic descriptors allow our shortened name (e.g., RCH or GIP) followed by your merchant name. This field is variable but often maxes out at 22 characters. We include our customer support number on the descriptor when possible.

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Important

Remember that the final say of what appears on a customer's statement is ultimately up to the issuing bank. While most of your consumers might see "RCH_MERCHANTNAME", there is always a small percentage of outliers with an unexpected display configuration.

Billing descriptor requirements

A complete billing descriptor must meet the following requirements:

  • Contains only Latin characters
  • Contains between 5 and 22 characters (inclusive)
  • Contains at least one letter (if using a prefix and suffix, both require at least one letter)
  • Does not contain the following special characters: <, >, /, ', ", *.
  • Reflects your business name clearly
  • Contains more than a single common term or common website URL (a website URL only is acceptable if it provides a clear and accurate description of a transaction on a customer's statement)

Authorization descriptors

Your customers may notice that the descriptor on their credit card appears once authorized (but before the transaction has been captured or settled). This "authorization descriptor" is also known as a "pending descriptor." Some issuing banks will display a different line of text from the final descriptor. That's why it's important to note "RCH" in the descriptor.

Keep in mind that pending transactions are not available to be disputed or charged back.

Avoiding chargebacks

Understanding your customers and providing proactive information to them is key to avoiding chargebacks. Many Requests for Information (RFIs) or chargebacks result from the end consumer not remembering a particular transaction. Having a clear descriptor is key to avoiding this pitfall.

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Important

Ensure that if a customer contacts your company, your customer service team understands the relationship between Reach and your company.

"Fraud" or "No Authorization" chargebacks exist for every card scheme and can occur more frequently due to poor descriptor selection.

Alternative payment methods

The following table shows the most common ways to display transaction descriptors for end consumers who use non-credit card payment methods.

Alternative Payment MethodBilling Descriptor
OXXO Payment VouchersThe voucher mentions 'Astropay Direct', but not Reach or the merchant.
OXXO Payment ReceiptsThe receipt mentions 'Cobro de Astro Pay', but not Reach or the merchant.
Boleto Payment VouchersThe voucher mentions 'Astropay Brasil Ltda', but neither Reach nor the merchant is mentioned.
Boleto Payment ReceiptsBoleto receipts vary by payment location, but the receipt usually mentions something similar to 'comprovante de pagamento de titulos' with no mention of who the payment is going to (i.e., there is no mention of Reach or the merchant).
Sofort ReceiptThe receipt mentions 'Global Collect BV', but not Reach or the merchant.
MXN Installment PaymentsThe page descriptor is similar to 'PAGOCON*EBANX>>MERCHANTNAME<<'.
PayPalPayPal allows various methods of displaying a descriptor. Still, it depends in part on where the transaction is processed, which PayPal entity is in use, and what PayPal checkout method is employed.

We endeavor to put as much information on the PayPal interface as possible, but the customer may see the merchant's name, "Reach", or simply "PayPal" as the descriptor.

Support

If you’d like to update your billing descriptor, find out what your current descriptor is, or inquire about any aspect of descriptors, contact us at [email protected].