The Address Verification Service (AVS) is a tool provided by credit card processors and issuing banks to merchants in order to detect suspicious credit card transactions and prevent credit card fraud. The AVS checks the billing address submitted by the card user with the cardholder's billing address on record at the issuing bank. This is done as part of the merchant's request for authorization of the credit card transaction. The credit card processor sends a response code back to the merchant indicating the degree of address matching, thereby authenticating ownership of a credit or debit card in a non-face-to-face transaction. This process helps the merchant in determining whether a card transaction should be accepted or rejected.
AVS is one of the most common tools used by merchants to prevent credit card fraud. However, it is not a foolproof system, since the billing address provided by a bona fide customer may not always match the address on record at the card issuer. Reasons for such a mismatch would be a recent move by the cardholder or an address of record that was incorrect to begin with. In such cases, the merchant runs the risk of rejecting a perfectly legitimate transaction. AVS is an important part of the credit card authentication process and applies to cardholder addresses from the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom and internationally.
Understanding the Address Verification Service (AVS)
The Address Verification Service (AVS) is a fraud prevention system that, when used effectively, can help to limit fraud and charge-backs. AVS works to verify that the billing address entered by the customer is the same as the one associated with the cardholder’s credit card account. AVS is widely used by the major credit card companies to stop card-not-present (CNP) fraud and supported by omniPay.
During the checkout process, a customer enters their address, which is then compared to the address on file with the issuing bank. Once the addresses are compared, the issuing bank returns an AVS code to the omniPay. You can configure omniPay to use this AVS code as a guide to determine how to proceed with the transaction.
AVS response codes
Following a request from a merchant for an address verification, the credit card processor sends an AVS response code back to the merchant indicating the degree of address matching. The meaning of the codes vary between credit card processors. Merchants can use the AVS code to determine whether to accept or reject a credit card transaction.
| Code | Visa | Mastercard | Discover | American Express |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | Street address matches, ZIP does not | Street address matches, ZIP does not | Street address matches, ZIP does not | Street address matches, ZIP does not |
| B | Street address match for international transaction; postal code not verified. | Street address match for international transaction; postal code not verified. | Street address match for international transaction; postal code not verified | Street address match for international transaction; postal code not verified. |
| C | Street & postal code not verified for international transaction | Street & postal code not verified for international transaction | Street & postal code not verified for international transaction | Street & postal code not verified for international transaction |
| D | Street & Postal codes match for international transaction | Street & Postal codes match for international transaction | Street & Postal codes match for international transaction | Street & Postal codes match for international transaction |
| E | Ineligible transaction. Address verification not allowed for card type. | Ineligible transaction. Address verification not allowed for card type. | Ineligible transaction. Address verification not allowed for card type. | Ineligible transaction. Address verification not allowed for card type. |
| F | Street address and postal code match (UK Only) | Street address and postal code match (UK Only) | Street address and postal code match (UK Only) | Street address and postal code match (UK Only) |
| G | Non-U.S. issuing bank does not support AVS | Non-U.S. issuing bank does not support AVS | Non-U.S. issuing bank does not support AVS | Non-U.S. issuing bank does not support AVS |
| I | Address information not verified for international transaction | Address information not verified for international transaction | Address information not verified for international transaction | Address information not verified for international transaction |
| K | Not applicable | Not applicable | Not applicable | Card member name matches |
| L | Not applicable | Not applicable | Not applicable | Card member name and ZIP match |
| M | Street address and postal code match (International Only) | Street address and postal code match (International Only) | Street address and postal code match (International Only) | Card member name, street address, and ZIP code match |
| N | Street address and ZIP code do not match | Street address and ZIP code do not match | Street address and ZIP code do not match | Street address and ZIP code do not match |
| O | Not applicable | Not applicable | Not applicable | Card member name and street address match |
| P | Zip code matches, street address unverifiable due to incompatible formats (International Only) | Zip code matches, street address unverifiable due to incompatible formats (International Only) | Zip code matches, street address unverifiable due to incompatible formats (International Only) | Zip code matches, street address unverifiable due to incompatible formats (International Only) |
| R | System unavailable, retry | System unavailable, retry | System unavailable, retry | System unavailable, retry |
| S | AVS not supported | AVS not supported | AVS not supported | AVS not supported |
| T | Not applicable | Not applicable | 9-Digit ZIP matches, street address does not | Not applicable |
| U | Address information unavailable. Returned if the U.S. bank does not support non-U.S. AVS or if the AVS in a U.S. bank is not functioning properly. | Address information unavailable | Address information unavailable | Address information unavailable |
| W | 9-Digit ZIP matches, street address does not | 9-Digit ZIP matches, street address does not | 9-Digit ZIP matches, street address does not | Card member name, ZIP, and street address do NOT match |
| X | 9-Digit ZIP and street address match | 9-Digit ZIP and street address match | 9-Digit ZIP and street address match | 9-Digit ZIP and street address match |
| Y | 5-Digit ZIP and street address match | 5-Digit ZIP and street address match | 5-Digit ZIP and street address match | 5-Digit ZIP and street address match |
| Z | 5-Digit ZIP matches, street address does not | 5-Digit ZIP matches, street address does not | 5-Digit ZIP matches, street address does not | 5-Digit ZIP matches, street address does not |