What Is a Card-Not-Present (CNP) Transaction and Why It Costs More (2024)

In today’s digital world, if a customer doesn’t have a form of payment in hand, they can still make purchases. How? Making a purchase without being physically present is called a card-not-present (CNP) transaction.

What is a card-not-present transaction?

A card-not-present (CNP) transaction occurs when neither the cardholder nor the credit card are physically present at the time of the transaction. It’s most common for remote orders — over the phone or by fax, internet, or mail.

A transaction is only considered “card present” if payment details are captured in person at the time of the sale. This occurs when cards are physically swiped, tapped, or dipped through a reader or if anEMV chipis processed.

Examples of card not present transactions

There are anumber of CNP transactionsthat you probably come across everyday. They include:

• Online purchases: When a customer buys goods on the internet or through an eCommerce transaction.
• Phone orders: When a customer provides the credit card information over the phone to your business.
• Recurring payments:Payments that are set up to bill automatically.
• Invoices: Online payments.

How much does it cost to process credit cards remotely?

Just like processing credit cards in person, your business will have to pay toprocess card-not-present payments. As a refresher, the types ofcredit card processing feesthat make up your rate are interchange fees, assessment fees (charged by card brands like Visa and Mastercard), risk and PCI compliance, as well as your payment provider’s markup.

Generally, interchange fees are higher for card-not-present transactions because the chance of fraud and chargebacks is higher without the card present. These higher processing costs are then passed down to the merchant, which is why card not present transactions are usually more expensive than card-present transactions.

Square Processing Fees Video

Learn how card-not-present payment processing fees work with Square.

In 2018,CNP transactions made up54% of all lossesto fraud worldwide. Payments experts expect this number to gradually increase with the growth and adoption of eCommerce.

Understanding card-not-present fraud and how to prevent it

Card-not-present fraud is a type of credit card scam in which a defrauder uses someone else’s compromised card information to make a remote purchase. Because both the card and cardholder aren’t physically present (and fraudsters often steal complementary information like the CVV and billing address), it can be difficult for merchants to verify the purchaser’s identity.

According to a2020 Lexis Nexis True Cost of Fraud Study, every $1 of fraud costs U.S. retailers and eCommerce merchants $3.75 per transaction. It’s important to take proactive steps to stop credit card fraud, especially with CNP transactions.

According to a2017 US Payments Forum, the two best, most commonly used methods for authenticating online transactions are card verification numbers (CVN) — the three or four digits on the back of the card — and negative lists, also known as blacklists.

The address verification system (AVS) is also an effective way to verify the address of the person claiming to own the credit card. The system checks the billing address of the credit card provided by the customer with the address on file at the credit card company. This is why mostpayment processors, including Square, will ask you to verify your customer’s billing address before authorizing a CNP charge.

The MRC report indicates up-and-coming tools to authenticate payments will be 3DSecure (3DS)and device fingerprinting (like your iPhone’s home button or Face ID). 3DS is an authentication method that provides an additional layer of authentication for credit card transactions, protecting against fraudulent actors.

Four easy ways to accept and process CNP cards with Square

With Square, there’s no need to sign up for a separate card-not-present merchant account to process online payments. Here are some of the affordable ways to process CNP transactions with Square.

• Utilize Invoices.Invoicesare a strong option for customers who don’t feel comfortable disclosing their payment details over the phone.
• Implement the Square eCommerce API. This allows you to process payments with Square on your ownwebsite.
• Utilize Square Online Checkout. This generates a simple online checkout link or button. Just create a link with your item name and price, and share the link on your existing website, social media channels, or in an email. Learn how to get started withSquare Online Checkout.
• Manually enter card information using Square Virtual Terminal.This is ideal for orders taken remotely or over the phone. You can manually enter card information on your Square app or use Square Virtual Terminal on your computer.

Process a card-not-present transaction with Square Virtual Terminal.

Square Virtual Terminal is a free product offered by Square that lets you safely process credit cards over the phone, by fax, or by mail. Simply open your Dashboard and turn any computer into a virtual POS system — no card reader or software needed. The Square card-not-present transaction fee when you manually key in is 3.5% + 15cents.

Here are the steps to process a CNP transaction on Square Virtual Terminal:

• Sign up for your free Square account.
• On your Dashboard screen in the left-side panel, click onVirtual Terminal.
• ClickTake a Payment.
• Enter the credit card details for the transaction. You will need to enter the final order amount along with the customer’s credit card number, expiration date, CVV, and billing zip code. The optional note field is great for leaving a personal thank-you or item details.
• ClickCharge.

Process a card-not-present transaction with manual entry.

Here are the steps to process a CNP transaction in the Square Point of Sale app:

Open the Square Point of Sale app and follow the steps belowto minimize the risk of payment disputes when making card-not-present transactions. Themanual card entryfee is 3.5%+15 cents.

• Open the Square Point of Sale app and add items to t.he sale
• TapCharge.
• TapManual Card Entry.
• Enter the card number, expiration date, security, and the customer’s billing zip code.
• TapCharge.

Process a card-not-present transaction with Square Online Checkout, Square Online, eCommerce API, or invoices.

When a customer makes a purchase through other card-not-present transaction methods such as Square Online Checkout, Square Online,eCommerce API, or pays an invoice online, the fee is 3.3% + 30 cents. If you are a Square seller with Invoices Plus this fee is 2.9% + 30 cents.