Visa VAMP Explained for Shopify Merchants

Since April 1, 2026, a Shopify merchant in the US, Canada, the EU or Asia-Pacific is flagged by Visa as "Excessive" once its VAMP ratio reaches 1.5%. VAMP, the Visa Acquirer Monitoring Program, is the single program Visa uses to monitor fraud and disputes on card-not-present transactions, replacing its separate fraud and dispute programs. Before that date, the merchant line sat at 2.2% (Visa VAMP fact sheet).

Many guides still quote 0.9% for 2026. That figure is not in Visa's fact sheet. Use the source.

What is the VAMP ratio and how is it calculated?

The VAMP ratio counts fraud reports (TC40) plus disputes (TC15) and divides them by settled transactions (TC05), all on card-not-present Visa transactions. Fraud and disputes now sit in one number, so a store with low chargebacks but rising fraud reports can still cross the line.

Two exclusions matter for merchants. Disputes resolved through pre-dispute solutions are left out of the count, and so is TC40 fraud that qualifies for Compelling Evidence 3.0. Both depend on the timing of Visa's data extract, according to the fact sheet.

What are the VAMP thresholds for merchants in 2026?

A merchant is "Excessive" at a VAMP ratio of 150 basis points (1.5%) or more in Asia-Pacific, Canada, the EU and the US since April 1, 2026, and in Latin America. CEMEA stays at 220 basis points. In most regions the merchant must also have at least 1,500 fraud and dispute events in the month.

A worked example with round numbers: a store processing 100,000 card-not-present Visa transactions in a month with 1,600 fraud reports and disputes has a ratio of 1.6%. It clears the 1,500-event floor and sits above 1.5%. The same store at 1,400 events is below both lines.

Why does your acquirer care before you reach 1.5%?

Because Visa measures the acquirer too, and at much lower levels: an acquirer's portfolio is "Above Standard" at 0.5% and "Excessive" at 0.7%. A merchant pushing the portfolio up is a problem for the acquirer long before it reaches its own 1.5% line.

In practice, expect your payment provider to watch your ratio well before the published merchant threshold. The fact sheet sends merchants to their acquirer, processor or Visa representative for details on fees and remediation.

What about the enumeration ratio?

VAMP tracks card testing separately. The enumeration ratio is enumerated authorizations divided by all authorizations, and a merchant is flagged at 20% or more combined with at least 300,000 enumerated transactions in the month. Most Shopify brands will never get near 300,000 enumerated attempts. A store under a bot attack can.

How do you keep your VAMP ratio down?

The ratio has two inputs you can work on: disputes and fraud reports. Five steps, in order of impact:

1. Resolve disputes before they are filed. Chargeback alerts from the card networks give you a window to refund an order before the dispute becomes a TC15. We explain how they work in Ethoca alerts for Shopify merchants, and compare the tools in the best Shopify chargeback apps.

2. Prepare Compelling Evidence 3.0 data, since qualifying TC40 fraud is excluded from the ratio.

3. Make your billing descriptor and order emails easy to recognize, so customers don't dispute charges they forgot.

4. For memberships and subscriptions, send a reminder before each charge and keep cancellation easy. New York City now has its own rule on easy cancellation (NYC click-to-cancel rule).

5. Block card testing at checkout before it becomes an enumeration problem.

Alerts reduce the dispute side of the ratio. Fraud reports can still count, which is why step 2 matters.

Subscribfy's chargeback prevention intercepts 95% of chargebacks with alerts matched to your Shopify orders. If your ratio is climbing, bring your monthly Visa transaction count and dispute count to a 30-minute call and we'll show you where you stand against the 1.5% line. Book a call with Subscribfy.

Frequently asked questions

Is the VAMP merchant threshold 0.9% or 1.5% in 2026?

1.5% in Asia-Pacific, Canada, the EU and the US since April 1, 2026, per Visa's fact sheet. The 0.9% figure that circulates in older guides does not appear in that document.

Do refunds count toward the VAMP ratio?

A refund is not a dispute. Refunding after an alert, before a dispute is filed, keeps that transaction out of the dispute count. Fraud reports filed by the issuer can still count.

Does VAMP apply to small Shopify stores?

The ratio applies to every merchant, but in most regions a merchant is only identified as Excessive with at least 1,500 fraud and dispute events in the month. Your acquirer can still set its own, stricter limits.

Want to know how close you are? Book a 30-minute strategy call and bring last month's dispute and fraud counts.