Internal Procedure for Handling NCA Fines Received by Acquiring Banks

The fine file is received via email from the bank and sent to the compliance inbox for review and action. 

The Compliance Team will be responsible for reviewing the fine file: 

Identify the merchant involved. 

Pulling in additional data  

Assigned to  

Status 

Last transaction date 

Billing 

Reserve if applied 

Report any disputes or discrepancies back to the bank within 5 business days.  

Add a comment outlining the violation and actions taken. 

Update the CRM (MS Information) tab: 

Compliance Check: Only check when the merchant is compliant 

Compliance Date: Document the date the merchant is marked as “compliant” 

Secret Shopper Date: Record the date of the secret shopper visit that revealed the violation. 

Notify the ISO partner or BIN contact via email regarding the violation, including: 

The current violation details. 

Any pictures or documentation supporting the violation. 

Clear instructions for the merchant on the steps required to correct the violation. 

Ask the ISO partner if they wish to place reserve(s) (holds) on the merchant; if so, please do so through your portals if the MID is under a BIN 

Active merchants will have a $1K ceiling reserve placed.  

Information regarding potential additional billing or fines due to non-compliance 

A deadline of 14 days for the merchant to respond. If the fine is received via Esquire the merchant has 14 days to move the account to traditional or place it with another processing channel.  

Include in the communication that they must: 

Respond promptly to avoid further penalties. 

Correct the violation according to Visa rules and applicable state laws. 

The ISO Partner and/or merchant is required to: 

Address the violation within the 14-day period. 

Provide a detailed plan to correct the violation, including any steps to be taken. 

If the ISO Partner and/or merchant does not respond or fails to make efforts to rectify the violation within the designated timeframe, the Compliance Team must take the following actions: 

Move the merchant to traditional pricing, where applicable, if they do not intend to take corrective steps. 

If the ISO Partner/merchant refuses to move to traditional pricing, the merchant must be submitted for closure. 

All communications, updates, and compliance efforts should be properly documented in the CRM for future reference. 

A final review should be conducted to ensure all corrective actions have been taken, and the merchant is fully compliant before closing the case. 

Finance is to be advised of all billing and moving of funds. Master file located at https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1UWpaZrKYkErdt-rl0fp0E65cK7-8PtHs5fX9pmGss8Y/edit?gid=703439672#gid=703439672