Address verification
A cardholder authentication method that validates address information during card transactions to reduce fraud and chargebacks.
Address verification is a cardholder authentication method for card-not-present transactions that checks whether the address provided in a transaction matches the address on file with the card issuer.
Understanding address verification is important when processing card transactions, as it helps reduce fraud risk and prevent chargebacks.
Address verification is widely supported in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United States, and the United Kingdom.
How address verification works
During an authorization request, the merchant can request an address verification check by sending the address data in the request.
The address verification check compares two pieces of information from the transaction against the card's address on file:
- Postal code (ZIP code)
- Street address
For all authorizations that contain address data, Airwallex returns an approval or decline response together with an address verification result.
Airwallex does not decline transactions solely based on address verification failures.
Addresses used by Airwallex for verification
When an authorization request contains address data, the verification process compares it against all available addresses associated with the card:
| Address Type | Description | Applicable scenarios |
|---|---|---|
| Airwallex account address | For businesses, the business address and the registration address provided during account onboarding. For individuals, the residential address provided during account onboarding. The account address can be retrieved from Get account details API. | All cards |
| Cardholder address | The addresses of all cardholders associated with the card. The cardholder address can be retrieved from Get cardholders API. | All cards |
| Card delivery address | The card delivery address provided during physical card creation. The card delivery address can be retrieved from Get card details API. | Physical cards only |
Address verification results
The verification process generates a result code indicating whether the postal code and street address matched. The following table shows the possible verification outcomes:
| Result code | Postal code | Street address |
|---|---|---|
| VERIFIED | Match | Match |
| NOT_MATCHED | No match | No match |
| ADDRESS_MATCH | No match | Match |
| POSTAL_CODE_MATCH | Match | No match |
Impact of address verification results
For approved authorizations with an address verification result of NOT_MATCHED, merchants might choose to reverse the transaction to prevent possible fraud and chargebacks.
See also
To learn more about transaction processing and authorization, refer to:
- Concepts:
- How-to guides: