V
Visa Network Response CodesVisa 21
No Action Taken
Unknown
Unclassified or source-specific codes
Do Not Retry
Retry will not succeed
Description
The issuer was unable to process the transaction but no specific reason was provided. No standard retry guidance applies.
Recommended Action
Investigate the transaction details and contact your payment processor for clarification.
Common Causes
- Issuer could not complete the request
- Transaction request was not actionable
- Communication or processing anomaly
Recovery Tips
- Review the transaction details for errors
- Contact your payment processor for guidance
- Ask the cardholder to try again or use a different card
Quick Reference
Code
21
Category
Unknown
Retryable
No
Source
Visa
Related Decline Codes
04Non-Retryable
Pick Up Card
The issuing bank requests that the card be captured. The card is not necessarily fraudulent but the issuer does not want it used. No reattempts are permitted.
07Non-Retryable
Pick Up Card (Fraud)
The issuing bank requests that the card be captured due to suspected fraud on the account. No reattempts are permitted.
12Non-Retryable
Invalid Transaction
The transaction type is not valid or not supported for this card. The issuer will never approve this specific transaction. No reattempts are permitted.
14Non-Retryable
Invalid Account Number
The card number does not correspond to any existing account. The card may have been mistyped, or the account may no longer exist. Visa categories this as both 1 (never approve) and 3 (revalidate data).
Visa 21 recovery
Recover more payments like Visa 21
Slicker handles codes like 21 by combining decline reason, issuer behavior, BIN data, and timing signals to choose the next best recovery action.
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