Hard vs soft declines: how to manage card declines and reduce your decline rate
A hard decline should never be retried: the cardholder needs to contact their bank. A soft decline can be retried once the issue is fixed, but don’t try the same declined card more than twice for the same amount within a 24-hour period.
On this page
Why do card transactions get declined?
Card transactions get declined for reasons such as an invalid or expired card, insufficient funds or a bank decline. The decline can come from three places:
- your processor
- the payment gateway, because of fraud filters or rules you have set up
- the card issuer
Each declined transaction has a decline message or reason code.
What is the difference between hard, soft and false declines?
- Hard decline: don’t try the transaction again. The cardholder should reach out to their bank to resolve it.
- Soft decline: you may be able to resubmit the transaction and get it approved once the issue is addressed. The accepted practice is not to attempt the same declined card more than twice for the same amount within a 24-hour period.
- False decline: a legitimate transaction that was declined because it looked like fraud.
Why does my decline rate matter?
Your decline rate compares the card authorizations you attempt with the ones that are declined. A high decline rate can put you out of scope with card issuers and put your merchant account at risk of closure. To reduce it, look at the reason behind each decline.
When can I retry a declined Visa transaction?
In April 2021, Visa introduced new decline management rules, rolled out in stages, to help merchants manage decline ratios and fraud. Visa decline responses fall into four categories, each with clearer decline codes and a rule on whether you may retry. Category 1 works like a hard decline: don’t retry. Categories 2, 3 and 4 may be retried under the conditions in the last column.
| Category | What it covers | Can you retry? |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Issuer Will Never Approve | The card is blocked, lost or stolen (for example, a “Pick up card” response). |  No. Don’t retry the authorization within a 30 day period. |
| 2. Issuer Cannot Approve at this Time | The issuer can’t approve right now because of a temporary condition or restriction. |  Yes, if conditions change. |
| 3. Data Quality | The issuer can’t approve based on the details sent, for example an invalid CVV. |  Yes, once the data is corrected. |
| 4. Generic Response Codes | All other codes, including ones with no description. Few declines fall into this category. |  Yes. |
For the full list of codes, download Visa’s enhanced response codes: Visa_Enhanced_Response_Codes.pdf
How can I reduce soft declines and my decline rate?
- Review where each decline is coming from and its reason code.
- Never re-attempt hard declines.
- Don’t re-attempt soft declines more than twice within a 24 hour period.
- If you use a payment gateway, review your filters.
- Turn on Address Verification Service (AVS) and CVV code checks.
- For recurring transactions, enroll in an account updater service so expired cards are updated automatically.
- For ecommerce transactions, set fraud prevention velocity filters.
- For ecommerce transactions, sign up for EMV 3D Secure, which adds an extra layer of authentication behind the scenes.
Common questions
What does a card issuer rejection mean?
The decline came from the card issuer rather than from your processor or your payment gateway. Check the decline code: if it’s a hard decline, don’t retry, and ask the cardholder to contact their bank.
What does a generic decline mean?
In Visa’s categories, generic response codes cover every other decline code, including ones with no description. Visa’s rule is that you may retry these, but don’t try the same declined card more than twice for the same amount within 24 hours.
Updated November 2, 2026
Still stuck? Talk to a person.
Our team answers the phone.
Looking at your processing costs? See the Cartis payment gateway