What is Expanded Credit Capabilities (ECC) and how to check the status? - Classic Experience (1.0)
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05/08/2025 18:53 PM
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This article will guide merchants through understanding and using Expanded Credit Capabilities (ECC).
The Expanded Credits Capabilities (ECC) feature allows the ability to issue refunds of any amount to any credit, debit, or prepaid card, irrespective of whether that card is associated with a previous sale. While this feature is convenient for many customer refunds, it carries a risk as it could potentially be misused, leaving you open to fraudulent transactions. There is no separate or additional fee for ECC.
Authorize.net recommends issuing only standard refunds (linked credits) for any necessary customer refunds. A linked credit is a refund directly tied to the original transaction/payment type processed through Authorize.net. This can be issued up to 180 days after the settlement of the original transaction, helping to eliminate the opportunities for misuse.
If ECC is absolutely necessary for your business, the Account Owner may submit an ECC support case requesting this feature and providing necessary documentation for this request. Your request will be reviewed, but approval/enablement is not guaranteed.
To request ECC, please follow these steps:
- Click Contact Us at the top of the account.
- Click Support Center.
- Select Apply for ECC from the Support Case drop-down menu, and fill out the online form.
- In the case, provide details as to why ECC is needed. For example:
- What software/website you are using (if any) and why does that system need ECC enabled?
- What is your Business Type/Model?
- Please provide a detailed explanation of why you need to have this service enabled.
- Once submitted your request for ECC will be reviewed and approved or rejected based on the information provided, there is no guarantee of enablement and it take several days for your request to be reviewed. If enabled it will be for a limited time period and the time period for enablement will be provided in your request response.
For information on how to submit a case, please see: Merchant Support Cases FAQ
To check the status of ECC feature:
- Log into the Merchant Interface.
- Click Merchant Profile in the main left side menu.
- The status of your Expanded Credit Capabilities application is listed in the Additional Services section.
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