Visa is consolidating multiple fraud and dispute programs into a single new acquirer program called the Visa Acquirer Monitoring Program (VAMP). As the deadline for these changes rapidly approaches, here’s what you need to know.
Announced last year and in effect as of April 1, 2025 (enforcement following on Oct 1), the VAMP streamlines and consolidates six existing fraud and dispute programs as well as 38 remediation processes into a single program. This will have the immediate effect of reducing the amount of terminology and metrics needed to describe a merchant’s fraudulent or disputed transaction rates. There will also be increased scrutiny on fraud or chargebacks through VAMP ratios.
If you’re a merchant or acquirer in business with Visa, these changes will affect you. If you’re out of the loop on Visa’s policy revamp, keep reading to stay informed.
Key Takeaways
- Visa’s VAMP policy will replace the VDMP, and VFMP, bringing all disputes and fraud under one policy.
- VAMP operates on the VAMP ratio (total disputes/total sales count) and the VAMP enumeration ratio (total enumerated transactions/total transactions).
- Falling above a certain threshold will result in an “excessive” label, which increases fees for disputes.
- The merchant threshold is 1.5% from October and drops to 0.9% in January 2026.
- Acquirers more than 0.3% and less than 0.5% are labeled “above standard” but anything over 0.5% will result in an “excessive” label.
- Fees for “excessive” merchants is $10 per fraudulent or disputed charge. It’s also $10 for “excessive” acquirers but lowers to $5 for an “above standard” label.
- VAMP transactions include TC40 and now all TC15 disputes—fraud and non-fraud alike.
- The same transaction may be counted twice—once in TC40 and again in TC15—if it appears in both datasets.
What’s Visa Changing with VAMP?
The Visa Acquirer Monitoring Program, commonly known as VAMP, is a Visa monitoring program and policy meant to ensure the integrity of Visa’s payment system. It requires merchants and acquirers to keep chargeback and fraud rates low to avoid increased scrutiny and additional fees, incentivizing amicable settlements, communication between acquirers and merchants, fraud detection, and clear terms of service. It operates on two major ratios: the VAMP ratio and the VAMP enumeration ratio.
The VAMP policy will replace both the Visa Dispute Monitoring Program (VDMP) and the Visa Fraud Monitoring Program (VFMP). VDMP and VFMP used to focus on chargeback ratios and fraudulent transactions respectively, but after October 1, VAMP will serve as the sole policy for all transaction disputes.
Vamp’s Ratio Formula
The VAMP ratio works on a formula that can be calculated by dividing your total fraudulent and disputed transactions by your total transaction count. In industry terms, the metric totals your TC40 Fraud and TC15 Disputes and divides by your total settled Visa transactions. This produces a percentage that will put you below or above a VAMP threshold.
From October to January 2026, this threshold will be 1.5% for merchants and 0.5% for acquirers and will reduce to 0.9% for merchants after the new year. If your “VAMP ratio” is equal to or higher than these percentages, Visa labels you as “excessive” and charges more per fraudulent or disputed charge.
In some cases, a single transaction may appear in both TC40 and TC15 datasets, meaning it is counted twice toward the VAMP ratio. This double-counting increases the likelihood of exceeding thresholds and incurring penalties. The VAMP ratio = TC40 + TC15 ÷ TC05.
VAMP’s Enumeration Ratio
Another metric with VAMP is the enumeration ratio. This is calculated by dividing the total number of confirmed enumerated transactions by the total number of settled transactions. If at least 20% of a merchant’s transactions are enumerated and they have over 300,000 enumerated transactions, the merchant qualifies as “excessive” and is subject to fees per disputed or fraudulent translation.
What is an Enumeration Transaction?
Enumeration transactions are used by fraudsters to validate and verify stolen card details. This typically takes the form of a fraudster repeatedly making card-not-present transactions to test card details like the primary account number, card verification value (CVV2), expiration dates, and address information. If the fraudster gets an approval, they have more information about the cardholder for future attacks. They also will likely drain the associated account or rack up credit card purchases.
Visa expects merchants to perform due diligence when these kinds of transactions are detected. They also offer their Visa Account Attack Intelligence (VAAI) system which they claim can reduce false positives by 85%.
Which Transactions Qualify for VAMP?
VAMP’s scope of transactions include card-not-present (CNP) transactions with a minimum monthly threshold of 1,000 disputes or fraudulent transactions. Your total number of VAMP transactions is based on TC40 Fraud and TC15 Disputes under condition codes 11, 12, and 13.
- TC40 Fraud is a Visa record that has information about a cardholder’s fraud claims.
- TC15 Disputes now include both fraud and non-fraud chargebacks.
How Does the VAMP Affect Merchants?
While VAMP focuses on acquirers, it’s likely acquirers will pass the cost of VAMP fees to their merchants. If you’re a merchant, you can expect harsher thresholds but a more streamlined payment integrity system that requires less terminology to understand.
The new “excessive” threshold for merchants will start on October 1 at 1.5% (total TC40 + TC15/total sales) and drop to 0.9% on January 1, 2026. The new enumerated threshold starts at 20% of your total transactions with similar fees. The “above standard” label for merchants will disappear; you are either enrolled in VAMP, or not.
Fees for merchants that qualify as “excessive” are subject to a $10 charge per disputed or fraudulent charge.
How Merchants Can be Proactive Before VAMP
Due to the European Union’s PSD2 regulation (and 2026’s successor PSD3), most European organizations are likely already prepared for the changes introduced by VAMP. In some ways, the introduction of the streamlined VAMP policy is Visa’s way of aligning with European economic regulations.
However, since VAMP will apply globally, here’s how merchants can prepare for these changes.
- Know Your VAMP Ratio
It seems obvious, but you should be aware of your VAMP ratio, which you can calculate by totaling your disputed or fraudulent transactions and dividing them by your total CNP transactions. Weigh your rates against the VAMP thresholds and try to understand where you will fall into this new policy.
If your metrics exceed the new threshold, you should reevaluate your block rate and which transactions you’re blocking. You may need to rethink your strategy for detecting and blocking fraud. Start by improving your policies to prevent non-fraud disputes and change your acquirer if their VAMP ratio is high. Some merchants have relied on 3D Secure (3DS) to route high-risk transactions and shift fraud liability to the issuer. However, 3DS transactions still count toward your VAMP ratio, even if you’re not financially liable for the fraud. This makes it essential to stop fraud before authorization.
Only a few remediation channels can truly reduce your VAMP ratio:
- Compelling Evidence 3.0 (CE3.0), which may reduce liability (not CE3.0 representment)
- CDRN (e.g., Verifi, Ethoca), which may show in TC40 but avoid TC15
- RDR, which removes transactions from TC15 but not TC40
Lastly, weigh your growth goals against your desired risk aversion. There’s such a thing as “fraud appetite” and if you can lower friction enough to maintain growth, it’s worth considering in the short-term. Start by checking the average rates in your industry to determine if a high chargeback rate is expected in your vertical. Then decide if your budget and projections will allow you to mitigate VAMP’s new thresholds.
- Check Your Acquirer’s T&C
Check your acquirer’s terms and conditions for chargeback ratios and who is expected to pay for them. While you’re at it, make sure you have open and clear communication with your acquirer so you have the metrics necessary to determine your VAMP ratio. Transparency with VAMP is key.
Next, simply ask your acquirer about any impending changes they’re planning to make as a result of the VAMP revamp. If these changes disrupt your plans or growth, consider looking into different options.
- Use Fraud Prevention Tools
If you’re not already using fraud prevention tools, start now. The VAMP update brings with it potentially damaging amounts of fees for very low thresholds, so while many merchants will do the most to stay under the VAMP thresholds, small mistakes could lead to costly results. Calculate how much you stand to lose in revenue due to fraudsters or common misunderstandings and plan accordingly: is a fraud prevention service justifiable?
Services like Sift are a good place to start. With VAMP ratio thresholds, the best policy is to prevent risky transactions rather than react to them. Payment protection solutions identify and block high-risk behavior early on, such as with account creation, login, device information, account updates, browsing activity, and order creation. By detecting fraud before card authorization, you can reduce the number of transactions that could end up in TC40 or TC15 and therefore lower your VAMP ratio.
How Does the VAMP Affect Acquirers?
If you’re an acquirer, you’re likely already prepared for this, as the PSD2 requirements have been in effect in the EU for some time already. Still, if you’re not operating in Europe or operate in a specialty space, know that the new VAMP rates will shift focus further onto acquirers, requiring increased monitoring and reporting.
The change from 1% to .03% to remain in good standing is bigger than it seems. Your “above standard” rating will remain, is applicable with VAMP ratios between 0.3% and 0.5% and will result in a $5 charge on every disputed or fraudulent charge. Going over the 0.5% will result in an “excessive” label and a $10 charge on every disputed or fraudulent charge.
How Acquirers can be Proactive Before VAMP
There’s no two ways about it: Visa appears to be shifting focus further and further onto acquirers, meaning that these changes will likely affect them the most. For some acquirers, the VAMP changes will result in fees that can be passed on to the merchants, who in practice will do what they can to correct high VAMP ratios to avoid increased fees. Nonetheless, there are steps acquirers can take to prepare for these changes.
- Evaluate Your Merchant Relationships and Communication
Study your current ratios with your merchants to determine if they will become an issue on October 1 and January 1. If your fraudulent or disputed transaction rate is higher than the incoming VAMP thresholds, you should act to reduce those rates and minimize penalties.
Consider what sectors your merchants operate in and if they are at an increased likelihood of fraud, disputed transactions, and enumeration attacks. If your merchants operate in high risk sectors or are subject to frequent enumeration attacks, consider investing in fraud detection software.
Think about what kind of information (and how much) you’re sending to your merchants. Put simply, as your rates go up due to VAMP thresholds, so do your merchants’ rates. Giving them dispute data even after liability has shifted to you, the acquirer, is a good way to help your merchants understand the ratio outlooks and work to prevent them.
- Make Sure Your Merchants Have Fraud Detection
Fraud detection is a necessity with VAMP thresholds, as any measure to reduce your VAMP ratio after payment authorization will have no effect. With just 1,000 disputes, you would be crossing the threshold into “excessive”. Having fraud detection in place is one of the easiest ways to keep these transactions low.
Be Proactive to Reduce Disruptions
Ensure you understand your VAMP ratio, have fraud detection in place, and that you have open and clear communication with your customers. Finally, always remember to work with your customers to find good outcomes to avoid unnecessary chargebacks.
For most merchants, these VAMP changes are already accounted for. Visa announced these threshold reductions and policy consolidation efforts nearly a year ago as of March 2025. If you operate internationally, EU regulations like PSD2 and the upcoming PSD3 have already onboarded most merchants for this new Visa fraud monitoring program and dispute resolution platform. Check with your finance team to make sure they understand what is coming.
VAMP is an effort by Visa to reduce tolerance for disputes, fraud, and poor business practices, so as long as you have your customer’s best interests in mind, have compliant acquirers, and clearly understand your financial projections and obligations, you can continue growing your business.
Learn more about how to prevent fraud and protect your business.
