V
Visa Network Response Codes78
Blocked – First Used / Not Activated
Soft Decline
Temporary failures that may succeed on retry
Retryable
This decline may succeed on retry
Description
The card is blocked, possibly because it has not been activated by the cardholder, or a temporary block is in place for new cards.
Recommended Action
Ask the cardholder to activate their card or contact their bank to remove the block. Retry after activation.
Common Causes
- New card not yet activated
- Temporary block on first use pending verification
- Card temporarily blocked by the issuer
Recovery Tips
- Ask the cardholder to activate their card
- Retry after the cardholder confirms activation
- Contact the issuer to unblock if this is a known customer
Quick Reference
Code
78
Category
Soft Decline
Retryable
Yes
Source
Visa
Related Decline Codes
01Retryable
Refer to Card Issuer
The issuing bank is requesting the merchant to contact them before proceeding. This is a generic referral code indicating the issuer wants more information or verification.
02Retryable
Refer to Card Issuer (Special Condition)
Similar to code 01 but indicates a special condition. The issuing bank wants the merchant to contact them for a specific reason related to the account.
03Retryable
Invalid Merchant
The merchant ID or terminal configuration is not recognized or not valid for this transaction type. This typically indicates a setup issue rather than a cardholder problem.
05Retryable
Do Not Honor
The issuing bank has declined the transaction without providing a specific reason. This is one of the most common decline codes and can be temporary or permanent depending on the issuer's internal risk assessment.
Automate Payment Recovery for Visa
Slicker automatically handles decline codes like 78 by intelligently retrying at the optimal time based on the decline reason.