Merchant category codes

Key facts (as of 29 October 2026)

• Gambling: online gambling merchants must use MCC 7995 "for all transactions, even if gambling is not the Merchant's primary business" (Visa Merchant Data Standards Manual, October 2026).
• What 7995 covers: Visa lists casino chips, lottery and raffle tickets, off-track betting, bingo, sweepstakes, and unlicensed foreign exchange trading or binary options under 7995.
• Crypto purchases: must use MCC 6012 or 6051, with special condition indicator 7. Non-fiat acquisitions generally use 4829, 6012, 6051 or 6540.
• Ramp rule: when a ramp provider loads a gambling wallet, MCC 7995 must be used, "not 6051".
• Descriptors: acquirers must stop their agents from using dynamic merchant descriptors for gambling merchants.
• One site, one code: where a merchant runs several websites selling distinct goods or services, each website must get the MCC that fits its activity, "regardless of whether the websites are linked from a common parent site or operated under the same merchant entity" (Visa MDSM).

A merchant category code (MCC) tells the card issuer what kind of business is behind a transaction. Issuers use it to approve or decline, apply cardholder blocks such as gambling blocks, and set fees. Networks use it to apply programmes such as the Visa Integrity Risk Program.

High-integrity-risk codes (Visa)

Visa's October 2026 manual lists these, among others, as high integrity risk for card-absent transactions (selection relevant to this wiki):

Other codes that matter to this wiki:

Sources: Visa Integrity Risk Program guide (2023) and Visa Merchant Data Standards Manual (October 2026). Descriptions are abbreviated. VIRP tiers are from the 2023 guide and may have changed.

Rules that matter most

1. Code the activity, not the company. A merchant with several lines of business must give the high-integrity-risk line its own MCC.
2. Online gambling is always 7995. In a card-absent environment, a merchant that conducts online gambling must use 7995 for all transactions, even if gambling is not its primary business (Visa MDSM).
3. US-licensed gambling uses 7800–7802. Qualifying lottery and gambling transactions in the US must use these codes for all transactions.
4. Crypto as a route doesn't change the code. If a cardholder buys crypto through a ramp in order to gamble, the ramp must use the gambling merchant's code. Visa's reasoning is that "the nature of the transaction is an intent to gamble not to purchase non-fiat currency".
5. Payment facilitators and ramps assign per merchant. A facilitator must give each sponsored merchant the MCC that fits that merchant's business. A ramp provider must do the same for each Conversion Affiliate.
6. Games of skill are not games of chance. 5816 excludes games of chance. Fantasy sports belong in 5816 only "in jurisdictions where they [are] not considered gambling".

Choosing the right code: gambling-adjacent cases

flowchart TD
    A[Transaction at a gaming-related merchant] --> B{Prize of monetary value for a game of chance or bet?}
    B -- Yes --> C{US merchant qualifying for government-licensed codes?}
    C -- Yes --> D[7800 / 7801 / 7802]
    C -- No --> E[7995]
    B -- No --> F{Skill game with wagering, e.g. daily fantasy?}
    F -- Yes, and not gambling locally --> G[5816, high integrity risk]
    F -- No --> H{Buying crypto to gamble?}
    H -- Yes --> E
    H -- No --> I[Standard MCC for goods or services]

Codes and jurisdictions

WarningTransaction laundering and miscoding, where high-risk payments are processed under a low-risk merchant's code, are treated by networks as serious violations. The consequences can include fines, termination and listing on shared databases. They also defeat cardholder protections such as gambling blocks. Monzo said its gambling block stopped about £9m of gambling payments in 2024 (Finzil). See Descriptors and transaction laundering.

NoteMCCs keep changing at the edges. Visa's manual is reissued regularly, so check the current edition before building merchant onboarding rules.

Illustrative example: a multi-brand group

Illustrative example. The group is hypothetical. It assumes each website is set up as its own merchant outlet; because Visa requires all card-absent transactions of an online gambling merchant to use 7995, confirm the set-up with your acquirer.

Timeline

Q/A

Does stablecoin settlement need an MCC?

Not on-chain, because MCCs are a card-network concept. But card-funded steps, such as a player buying stablecoins with a card, are coded, and the ramp rule above applies.

Who assigns the MCC?

The acquirer, or the payment facilitator for its sponsored merchants, under network rules.

Can a merchant ask for a different code to improve approval rates?

No. The code must describe the actual activity. Approval problems on 7995 are handled by better routing, alternative payment methods and issuer communication, not recoding.

Are binary options coded as 7995?

Visa's 7995 listing includes "Unlicensed Foreign Exchange Trading or Binary Options". Regulated trading platforms fall under 6211 as high integrity risk.

Do Mastercard codes match Visa's?

Most MCC numbers are shared across networks, but each network has its own rules and programmes. Check both sets of rules.

Do stablecoin-linked cards change MCC rules?

No. A stablecoin-backed Visa card is still a Visa card at the merchant. The merchant's MCC applies as normal.

Sources

• Visa, Visa Merchant Data Standards Manual (October 2026): https://usa.visa.com/dam/VCOM/download/merchants/visa-merchant-data-standards-manual.pdf
• Visa, Visa Integrity Risk Program guide (April 2023): https://www.visa.cl/content/dam/VCOM/regional/lac/SPA/chile/Documents/visa-integrity-risk-program-chile.pdf
• Finzil (18 October 2026): https://finzil.com/blog/igaming-payment-challenges
• 15M, payments and fintech news: https://15m.com/news/payments-fintech/
• UK Gambling Commission, credit card ban: https://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/news/article/gambling-on-credit-cards-to-be-banned-from-april-2020
• Planalto, Medida Provisória 1.394: https://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/_ato2023-2026/2026/mpv/mpv1394.htm
• 15M, Georgia adds MCC 7995 payments to international iGaming licences (29 September 2026): https://15m.com/news/georgia-adds-mcc-7995-payments-to-international-igaming-licences/
• 15M, Fiserv lists US$0.02 and US$0.10 Visa gambling fees in Latin America (10 October 2026): https://15m.com/news/fiserv-lists-0-02-and-0-10-visa-gambling-fees-in-latin-america/