Discover Reason Code NA: No Authorization

What Discover reason code NA means

NA is an authorization code. The issuer says the transaction you settled isn’t backed by a valid authorization approval. That covers three situations:

• No authorization at all: the transaction was submitted without ever being authorized.
• Expired authorization: it was authorized, but captured after the authorization was no longer valid.
• Amount over the approval: the settled amount was higher than the authorized amount, beyond any tolerance the rules allow.

NA is usually raised by the issuer, not the cardholder. It’s a rules issue about how the transaction was processed, not a complaint about the purchase.

Common causes

• Pre-orders, backorders or made-to-order goods captured weeks after authorization
• Split shipments where the captures together exceed the original approval
• Tips or final totals higher than the authorized amount
• Offline or stand-in sales submitted without authorization
• Upsells added to an order after the initial authorization

Evidence that wins an NA dispute

1. The approval: approval code, masked card number, amount and date for the authorization behind the settled transaction.
2. Capture within the approval: the settled amount, showing it doesn’t exceed the authorized amount. For split shipments, every capture and the running total.
3. Timing: the authorization date and capture date, showing the capture happened while the authorization was valid.
4. Re-authorization records: if you re-authorized before capturing, the newer approval.

A short table of authorization and capture events, with dates and amounts, is often the clearest rebuttal.

How to prevent NA chargebacks

• Capture within your processor’s authorization validity window, and re-authorize when shipping is delayed.
• For split shipments, authorize the full order and keep captures within the approved total, or authorize each shipment separately.
• Get a new authorization, with customer approval, when you add upsells or increase the order total.
• Avoid offline transactions where you can, and review any that are needed.

Should you fight or accept?

Fight when you hold a valid approval that covers the full settled amount and was still valid when you captured.

Accept when the transaction was never authorized, the approval had expired, or you captured more than was approved. In that last case only the excess may be in dispute, so check the disputed amount and fix the capture logic. Related: LP late presentation and AW altered amount.