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Mastercard Chargeback Time Limit

Understanding the Dates & Deadlines Are you a merchant fighting an unfair chargeback claim? Or, are you a cardholder dealing with a case of criminal fraud? In either case, Mastercard chargebacks come with built-in time limits you need to know about. ......

Mastercard Chargeback Time Limit
Mastercard Chargeback Time Limits: Understanding the Dates & Deadlines
Are you a merchant fighting an unfair chargeback claim? Or, are you a cardholder dealing with a case of criminal fraud? In either case, Mastercard chargebacks come with built-in time limits you need to know about.

Merchants and consumers face strict time limits for each phase of the dispute. Miss one of these deadlines, and they risk their case being thrown out, no questions asked. If that happens, they lose any hope of recovering the money in question.

In this post, we’ll answer some of the most important questions about Mastercard chargeback time limits. What are the basic Mastercard time limits for merchants and cardholders? And, why being aware of these time limits is important for both merchants and consumers.

How Long Do Cardholders Have to File a Mastercard Dispute?
The deadlines are pretty straightforward on the consumer side. From the original transaction or expected delivery date, Mastercard cardholders generally have no more than 120 days to file a dispute.Though there are a few exceptions,  In most situations, 120 days is the rule.

How Long Do Merchants Have to File a Mastercard Dispute?
The deadline for US merchants to respond in a Mastercard chargeback situation is 45 days. Keep in mind, however, that the time windows presented here don’t only apply to merchants. Other parties, such as acquirers and processors, may also have actions to perform in the same timeframe.
These other parties have the power to impose their own deadlines to give themselves more time. This means that the amount of time actually available to the merchant may be significantly less than the 45-day figure outlined in the Mastercard rules.

Mastercard chargeback time limits are confusing…much like many other parts of the Mastercard dispute process. Without knowing how different factors affect the timeframe, however, means merchants are much more likely to miss a deadline and automatically lose a case.
If you're a merchant, outsourcing chargeback management to the right professionals can free up time and ensure a much higher win rate.