What changes once a processor decides your business is high risk?
Summary
Mostly two things: whether you get approved at all, and how soon your sales reach your bank. Stripe publishes one list of businesses it will not serve and a second list it will serve only after extra review, such as proof of licenses. An approved business can still be put on a reserve, where part of its money is held for a set period against future refunds and disputes.
Two lists, and neither is final
Stripe's Prohibited and Restricted Businesses page splits the question in two. Prohibited businesses cannot use Stripe at all. Examples include debt settlement, lotteries, bidding fee auctions, timeshare services, counterfeit goods, and pyramid schemes, and Stripe says the list is representative, not exhaustive.
Restricted businesses need additional due diligence first. The list includes crowdfunding platforms, online dating, file-sharing services, buy now, pay later services, telehealth, and travel reservation services and clubs. A business in one of these groups can be asked for license proof or more detail on its business model, and may still be turned down. Approval is given service by service, and Stripe says it can modify or revoke it at any time. The lists move, too: the page's change notes record credit repair services in the U.S. moving from prohibited to supportable.
How a reserve works
| Question | What Stripe says |
|---|---|
| What is it? | A temporary hold on a portion of a business's funds for a predetermined period |
| What kinds? | Fixed and rolling |
| Can you keep selling? | Yes. A reserve does not affect your ability to accept payments |
| How is the size set? | By risk, weighing industry conditions, payment activity, dispute rate, refund rate, and financial stability |
| When is the money released? | At the end of the reserve period, minus refunds and disputes it covered |
Stripe gives four example triggers: an industry with longer-than-average delivery windows, a higher risk of not fulfilling orders, elevated dispute activity, and an unexplained sharp jump in volume. The terms arrive by email with the amount or percentage held and the period. A few days before the reserve expires, Stripe runs another credit review and removes, lowers, or raises it. In rare cases, Stripe says, a reserve stays in place indefinitely.
What a dispute costs at Stripe
Every dispute you receive costs $15 in the U.S. Contesting it manually costs another $15, and that second fee comes back only if you win. The first $15 does not come back either way. A business with a dispute problem pays in fees and, if a reserve follows, in held cash.
The line the card networks draw
Above the processor sits the card network. Visa's Acquirer Monitoring Program, known as VAMP, divides fraud reports plus disputes by settled transactions. On April 1, 2026, Visa lowered the ratio at which a U.S. merchant counts as "Excessive" to 150 basis points, or 1.5%, and its fact sheet pairs that ratio with a count of 1,500 a month.
Sources
- stripe.com/legal/restricted-businesses
- support.stripe.com/questions/reserves-faq
- stripe.com/us/pricing
- docs.stripe.com/disputes/how-disputes-work
- corporate.visa.com/content/dam/VCOM/corporate/visa-perspectives/securi…
Related on this site
- Is a merchant account just another business bank account?
- How much more does a chargeback cost a merchant than a refund?
- Will a high-risk business get HighRiskPay.com's 1.79% rate?
- Every provider we hold, and which publish a rate
- Method: how the figures are produced
Written by Kaz (pen name). Figures are copied from providers' published pricing pages on the dates shown. We have not used these products. Corrections: contact form.