2026 Visa VAMP Update

New Thresholds Explained

Visa Acquirer Monitoring Program (VAMP) thresholds dropped on January 1, 2026. With this update, even small increases in disputes or fraud can quickly push merchants into risky territory. Agents who understand this Visa VAMP update are better positioned to protect their residuals and win more deals.

If you haven’t already read my breakdown of the original VAMP framework, this VAMP update builds directly onto those fundamentals.

New Visa VAMP Update Thresholds

Ratio Assessment: (TC40 + TC15) / Settled Sales
Merchant Ratio: Drops from 2.2% → 1.5%
Required Threshold of Qualifying TC40s & TC15s: 1,500 per month

This applies to card-not-present transactions. For ecommerce-heavy portfolios, this significantly increases how quickly merchants can breach thresholds.

Significance of Visa VAMP Update

This isn’t just a merchant issue; it’s a portfolio risk issue.

With tighter thresholds and broader fraud reporting, more merchants can trigger monitoring, fees, or account instability, impacting your residuals and approvals.

What’s Actually Being Measured

Understanding how Visa calculates the VAMP ratio is critical.

TC15 Disputes (Non-Fraud): These are traditional disputes that can inflate a merchant’s ratio. You can reduce their impact using tools like Visa Rapid Dispute Resolution (RDR), which can automatically resolve qualifying disputes before they count against the merchant.

TC40 Fraud Reports (Not Actual Disputes): TC40 data is based on issuer-reported suspected fraud, not confirmed fraud or chargebacks. That means a transaction can count against a merchant even if no dispute is filed. The only real mitigation tool for this is Compelling Evidence 3.0 (CE3.0). However, CE3.0 only works if the card has at least 3 prior successful transactions under the same MID. If not, the transaction still counts toward the merchant’s fraud ratio. This creates a major exposure for new customers, first-time buyers, and high-ticket ecommerce merchants.

The Hidden Risk: Acquiring Bank-Level Ratios

Bank-level ratio threshold: 0.5%
Some banks are now considering additional fees or penalties when portfolios exceed this level

This means that, even if individual merchants are under 1.5%, your overall merchant portfolio could still trigger penalties. This is where portfolio management becomes just as important as merchant underwriting.

Volume Threshold: Who Actually Gets Flagged

For VAMP monitoring to apply, merchants must hit 1,500 reported transactions (fraud + disputes combined). This is key because:

Smaller merchants may fly under the radar
Mid-to-high volume merchants are far more exposed

Visa VAMP Update: What Agents Should Be Doing

In addition to the strategies outlined in our previous VAMP article, here are additional steps agents should take to stay ahead of the new Visa VAMP updates:

Audit Your Portfolio: Identify merchants with a high card not present transaction volume, subscription models, and elevated dispute or fraud signals.

Push RDR Adoption: RDR is one of the only ways to actively suppress TC15 disputes.

Set Expectations Around CE3.0: Educate merchants on the value of repeat customers, how fraud reporting works under TC40, and why first-time transactions carry more risk.

Strengthen Fraud Controls: This includes 3DS implementation, AVS and CVV enforcement. and device and behavioral fraud filters.

Monitor Bank-Level Exposure: Don’t just look at individual merchants. Start thinking in terms of portfolio-level risk to avoid acquiring bank penalties.

Merchant Services Agents, Act Now

The margin for error is shrinking. Agents who actively reduce disputes, mitigate fraud, and monitor portfolio risk will be better positioned to maintain approvals and protect their residual income. Don’t wait for banks to act, protect your merchants before accounts are at risk.

Join Elite Pay’s VAMP Protection Program to offer tools, education, and safe processing options

Disclaimer

The information provided here is for informational purposes only and focuses solely on payment processing in the cannabis industry. We do not endorse explicit or illegal content and encourage compliance with applicable laws and regulations. Readers should seek professional advice and use legitimate payment solutions while operating in this sector. We disclaim liability for any consequences resulting from the use of this information.