PayPal & Venmo Disputes

A dispute occurs when a shopper contests the legitimacy of a payment. When Airwallex receives a dispute notification from PayPal & Venmo, we promptly inform you via email and/or webhooks. You can access all relevant details of the dispute, including its cause, directly within your Airwallex account through the web interface (web app) or via the API API. While Airwallex provides comprehensive support to guide you through the dispute resolution process, it's important to note that Airwallex does not have a direct impact on the final decision. To better navigate the dispute resolution process, we strongly advise you to review the section on understanding disputes.

Dispute flow

PayPal

PayPal and Venmo disputes may go through two stages and have multiple different statuses. The process will generally follow the flow below.

Stage 1 - RFI

When a shopper opens a dispute with PayPal/Venmo, Airwallex will create a dispute case in your dispute management workflow, visible on the Airwallex web app or through the API.

You have 20 days to resolve the case (“Resolution Time”). You are strongly advised to reach out to the shopper directly to resolve the issue. No dispute fee will be charged if the dispute is resolved in the RFI stage.

During this stage, a dispute can have one of the 3 following statuses:

Stage	Description
Requires response	In this status, you can either reach out to the shopper to resolve the issue or accept the dispute directly by refunding the PayPal/Venmo payment. Available actions: Accept the dispute – We will refund the transaction to the shopper. You will be charged a refund fee when initiating the refund, but no dispute-related fees. Resolve the dispute with the shopper – Please reach out to the shopper directly to resolve the issue. If the shopper is willing to cancel the dispute, the shopper can close the dispute case by reporting the dispute as solved. No dispute fees will be charged if the shopper resolves the dispute case during the RFI stage. Timeframe: You usually have 20 calendar days (“Resolution Time”) after receiving the dispute to complete one of the actions above. Otherwise, the dispute will be escalated to the Chargeback stage, and you’ll be charged an Airwallex dispute fee.
Accepted	In this status, the dispute has been accepted, and the payment will be refunded to the shopper. Please note that this status is final, and you won’t be able to overturn the dispute.
Reversed	In this status, the dispute has been canceled by the shopper. No further action is required.

Stage

Description

Requires response

In this status, you can either reach out to the shopper to resolve the issue or accept the dispute directly by refunding the PayPal/Venmo payment. Available actions:

Accept the dispute – We will refund the transaction to the shopper. You will be charged a refund fee when initiating the refund, but no dispute-related fees.
Resolve the dispute with the shopper – Please reach out to the shopper directly to resolve the issue. If the shopper is willing to cancel the dispute, the shopper can close the dispute case by reporting the dispute as solved. No dispute fees will be charged if the shopper resolves the dispute case during the RFI stage.

Timeframe: You usually have 20 calendar days (“Resolution Time”) after receiving the dispute to complete one of the actions above. Otherwise, the dispute will be escalated to the Chargeback stage, and you’ll be charged an Airwallex dispute fee.

Accepted

In this status, the dispute has been accepted, and the payment will be refunded to the shopper.

Please note that this status is final, and you won’t be able to overturn the dispute.

Reversed

In this status, the dispute has been canceled by the shopper. No further action is required.

Stage 2 - Chargeback

When a PayPal/Venmo dispute case is not resolved within the Resolution Time, the dispute will be escalated to the Chargeback stage.

PayPal/Venmo will assign an Agent to step in and investigate. PayPal/Venmo will first evaluate the information provided by the shopper. This will help PayPal/Venmo determine if a dispute is still valid or should be rejected.

If the dispute is valid, PayPal/Venmo’s support team will request materials from you to better assess the case. A PayPal/Venmo agent will adjudicate the result of the dispute based on the information provided.

During the chargeback stage, a dispute can have one of the following statuses:

Stage	Description
Requires response	In this status, you can decide whether to accept or challenge the dispute. Available actions: Accept the dispute – The disputed amount will be refunded to the shopper. Respond to the dispute with supporting evidence – We will submit the supporting evidence to PayPal/Venmo for their review. Timeframe: The deadline to respond to a dispute varies by case. Please refer to your web app or API notifications for the specific expiration time. If no action is taken before the deadline, the dispute will be automatically accepted. ℹ️ While the exact timeframe is not fixed, PayPal/Venmo disputes typically expire around 11 calendar days after they are escalated to the chargeback stage.
Accepted	In this status, the dispute has been accepted. The payment will either be refunded to the shopper or has already been refunded. You may find a dispute in this status when: You accepted the dispute via web app or API. The dispute expired (i.e. you did not make a decision within the given timeframe). Please note that this status is final and you won’t be able to overturn the dispute.
Challenged	In this status, we will respond to PayPal/Venmo with evidence provided by you. PayPal/Venmo will adjudicate the case. Timeframe: While PayPal/Venmo does not have a formal SLA, adjudication usually takes between 1–2 business days or less.
Won	In this status, PayPal/Venmo has accepted your response. No further action is needed, as this status is final for all participants. Please note that the dispute fee remains non-refundable in such cases.
Lost	You may find a dispute in this status when: You responded to the dispute, but PayPal/Venmo has not accepted the evidence you provided. The payment will be refunded to the shopper. Please note that this status is final and you won’t be able to overturn the dispute.
Reversed	In this status, the chargeback has been reversed by the shopper. No further action is required.

Handle disputes

Airwallex offers two notification methods for dispute events: Email and Web hook. You have the flexibility to choose either option based on your system's capabilities. Learn more about dispute notifications here .

You can handle disputes via Airwallex web app or using APIs .

FAQs

How does PayPal/Venmo & Airwallex charge for disputes?

You will only be charged once by Airwallex when the dispute is escalated to the Chargeback stage.
For each dispute, you will be charged once and only once when the case is escalated.
If the dispute is resolved during the RFI stage, you will not be charged regardless of the outcome of the dispute.
If the dispute is resolved during the Chargeback stage, while PayPal/Venmo may incur additional dispute costs, Airwallex will not pass through these charges. You are only responsible for the one-time Airwallex dispute fee.

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