MCC (Merchant Category Code)
A four-digit code that describes the type of business a merchant is, assigned by the acquirer.
The Merchant Category Code is a four-digit number from the ISO 18245 standard that the acquirer assigns to each merchant to describe the type of business it runs. Card schemes and issuers use it to set interchange rates, apply risk rules and decide which merchants a card can be used with. A merchant with an incorrect code can be charged the wrong fees or flagged as higher risk, even when its trading is perfectly normal.
What it means for travel businesses.
Travel businesses are usually classified under codes for travel agencies and tour operators, airlines, hotels or car rental, depending on what they sell and how. Many tour operators sell across several of these categories, which makes the choice of code a real decision rather than a formality.
The code matters most when a card scheme or issuer queries a transaction months after the booking. If the code on the merchant record does not describe the sale, the explanation has to be rebuilt from memory, and that is slow when the booking was made by someone who has since left.
How felloh handles it.
The merchant category code sits on the merchant record, not on each payment. felloh keeps it visible alongside the bookings it covers, so finance can see which code a payment was processed under when a query comes in.
Related terms.
Acquirer
The financial institution or payment provider that enables a merchant to accept card payments.Read termGlossary termMerchant Discount Rate (MDR)
The total fee a merchant pays per card transaction, expressed as a percentage of value.Read termGlossary termSurcharge
An additional charge added to a payment to cover the merchant’s processing cost.Read termGlossary termCard-not-present (CNP) transaction
A card payment taken without the card being physically presented to the merchant.Read termSee how this works around your bookings.
Bring one payment, reporting or cash-position problem. We will show how felloh connects the booking-level money trail behind it.
Book a walkthrough