Declined - Do not honour
Last updated: 14th July 2022
A Declined - Do not honour notification is a request status associated with the 20005 response code, and it means that the customer's bank has declined the payment. This is the most common message provided by banks when a payment fails their authorization process.
This decline response means that the issuing bank has provided no further details about the payment failure, and we cannot override the response.
Sometimes the payment may have been declined owing to failed CVV or AVS checks, so it's worth checking these fields are correct before trying anything else.
Trigger scenarios
There are several possible scenarios that can trigger the 20005 (Declined - Do not honour) response code:
- The bank's fraud rules (which consider various factors that are not made public) have been triggered.
- The bank may have placed a temporary hold on the customer's card.
- The purchase session may have been locked due to multiple declined payments.
- The seller is located in a country different from that of the card issuing bank.
How to resolve
To resolve a 20005 (Declined - Do not honour) response, try the following:
- Ask the customer to contact their bank, explaining that they are trying to process a payment. The customer can ask the bank to allow the payment.
- Ask the customer to try again at a later time. The issuing bank may have only placed a temporary hold on the card.
- Ask the customer to use an alternative credit card.