MCC 5816: The Merchant Category Code for Digital Games

Both schemes name the code "Digital Goods: Games". It is meant for games and game content that the customer receives electronically rather than as a physical product. In practice it covers:

• Game downloads for PC, console and mobile.
• In-game purchases such as skins, items, levels and battle passes.
• Virtual currency and game credits that can only be spent inside the game.
• Game subscriptions and season passes sold digitally.
• Card-absent games of skill, where players pay an entry fee and the result depends on skill rather than chance.

The digital goods codes sit side by side, and the line between a game, an app and a bet is not always obvious. The code follows what the customer actually pays for.

• 5815, digital goods: media. Books, films, music and other media delivered electronically.
• 5817, digital goods: applications. Software and apps that are not games.
• 5818, digital goods: large digital goods merchant. Merchants that sell several kinds of digital goods at scale, such as large app stores.
• 7994, video game arcades and establishments. Mastercard also uses it for skill games such as paid fantasy sports.
• 7995, betting and gambling. Any product where the customer pays to play, chance decides the result and the prize has monetary value.

Paid tournaments, head-to-head matches with cash prizes and similar products are where 5816 gets more demanding. Visa places card-absent games of skill under 5816 and lists them as Tier 2 in its Integrity Risk Program, which has applied since May 2023. Mastercard uses 7994 for skill games. Either way, the acquirer has to register the merchant and keep watching how it operates.

The key question is whether skill or chance decides the result. If chance plays a material part and the prize has monetary value, the product may count as gambling and belong under 7995 instead. That question is also one of local law, so many skill game operators get a legal opinion for each market they serve before they apply.

Our skill games and esports betting pages cover how providers assess these businesses in more detail.

• Ordinary game sales: card issuers see 5816 as a normal digital goods code. The main risks are friendly fraud and refund disputes, often from purchases made on a parent's card.
• Games of skill: expect registration, a review of your terms, prize rules and player locations, and monitoring of your chargeback and fraud levels after you go live.
• Chargebacks: digital purchases are delivered instantly and cannot be returned, so clear receipts, purchase confirmations and spending controls make a real difference when you dispute a chargeback.

Running a product under a code that does not match what is actually sold is miscoding. If a game with paid entry and cash prizes is processed as an ordinary app, or a chance-based product is processed as a game, card schemes treat it as a breach once it comes to light. The usual result is a closed merchant account and possibly a listing on Mastercard's MATCH list, which makes future applications much harder. Getting the code right at the start is the faster route in the end.

Acquipayer is not a payment provider. If your business processes under MCC 5816, you describe your games, prize model, player markets and volumes once, and your profile is matched with a payment provider that accepts businesses like yours. Your account is then prepared with that provider. Final approval and terms are always the provider's decision.

• Visa, Merchant Data Standards Manual, April 2026.
• Mastercard, Quick Reference Booklet, Merchant Edition, February 2025.
• Visa Integrity Risk Program, in effect since May 2023.