Dating sites and apps can take card payments when they are matched with a provider whose policy covers online dating. Many processors restrict dating, and Visa places it in the top tier of its integrity program, but specialist acquirers board dating businesses with clear billing and good moderation. What decides the outcome is transparent subscriptions, low disputes and real protection against fake profiles.
Mainstream dating, niche dating, matchmaking services and platforms with adult content are underwritten very differently. Anything that looks like escort services or paid companionship is excluded by most acquirers. Describe your model plainly, and make sure the site and app store listings say the same.
Show the price, billing period and renewal date before payment, send a reminder before a free trial converts and make cancelling as easy as signing up. Card scheme rules require clear disclosure and cancellation for trials and subscriptions, and following them is the cheapest way to keep your chargeback ratio low.
Acquirers ask about profile verification, photo checks, moderation, reporting tools and how you handle romance scam reports. Platforms where users can be defrauded through the service create disputes and regulatory exposure, so a documented trust and safety process strengthens the application.
Dating services where users can message each other or share content are user-to-user services under the UK Online Safety Act. Ofcom enforces duties on illegal content, and services that allow pornographic content must use highly effective age assurance. Expect UK-facing acquirers to ask how you meet these duties.
Use a billing descriptor customers recognise, such as the app or site name, because an unknown name on a statement is a classic source of 'I don't recognise this' chargebacks. If you sell credits, coins or gifts, explain how they work, whether they can be refunded and how much a user can spend, since these models get extra scrutiny.
Payments inside an iOS or Android app usually go through the app store's billing, while web sign-ups go through your own provider. Acquirers will look at the share of revenue they will process and at the web checkout, so be ready to show both flows.
Provider suitability differs from business to business: two companies in the same industry can receive opposite answers because of licence, market mix, ticket size or dispute history. We do not state that a provider accepts an industry unless that provider has confirmed it, and no one can guarantee approval.
Provider fit in Dating depends on more than the industry itself: licence, markets, volume and dispute history all change the answer. Answer a few quick questions to start checking your own situation.
Industry, company country and estimated monthly volume, that is all we need to begin.
Yes. Dating businesses process cards through acquirers whose policy covers online dating, with an account set up for subscriptions and the scheme rules that apply to MCC 7273. Approval and final terms are always the provider's decision.
Visa places dating services in Tier 1 of its Integrity Risk Program. On top of that, subscription billing drives chargebacks, and fake profiles and romance scams create fraud and reputational risk. Acquirers price and control for all of these.
Usually MCC 7273, dating services. The acquirer assigns the code, and using a different one to avoid scrutiny is a scheme violation that can end the account.
Both treat online dating as restricted. PayPal's acceptable use policy requires its prior approval for online dating, and Stripe's restricted business list includes online dating and matchmaking, with specific prohibitions in India, the UAE and Thailand. Check their current policies for your own country.
Clear pricing before payment, reminders before trials convert and before renewals, easy cancellation, quick refunds for genuine complaints, a recognisable billing descriptor and chargeback alerts that let you refund before a dispute is filed.
In most cases, yes. A dating service where users can message each other or share content is a user-to-user service under the Act, and Ofcom enforces duties on illegal content and on protecting children. Services that allow pornographic content must use highly effective age assurance.
Some acquirers board them, but they are underwritten closer to adult content than to mainstream dating, with strict age verification, content controls and scheme registration. Describe the model accurately so the account is approved for what the site really is.
You describe your platform, markets, billing model, safety tools, volumes and processing history once in our online application. Your profile is matched with a payment provider whose policy accepts dating businesses like yours, and your account is prepared with that provider so you can start processing. It is free for merchants, and nothing is shared with a provider until you submit. Approval and final terms are always the provider's decision.
An iGaming payment solution is the combination of acquirer, PSP or gateway, local payment methods and payout rails that lets an operator take deposits and pay out winnings. Which of those will work for you is decided almost entirely by licensing and player geography: a provider that boards a Curaçao-licensed casino is rarely the same one that boards a UKGC-licensed brand, so the first step is matching your licence and markets to an acquirer's gambling programme.
Trading platforms are underwritten on regulatory status and client geography. A regulated brokerage in a recognised jurisdiction has a materially different provider pool than an offshore entity taking retail clients worldwide.
Crypto acceptance depends on what the customer receives. On-ramps selling digital assets, custodial exchanges and crypto-adjacent SaaS are underwritten as three different risk profiles.
Add your business essentials once. Your profile is compared against provider criteria, and nothing is sent until you submit your onboarding pack.
Check my payment optionsNothing is shared with a provider until you submit your onboarding pack. Approval is always the provider's decision.
