Level 2 & 3 Credit Card Processing

As experts in level 2 & 3 credit card processing, we’ll educate you on what data is needed to get the lowest interchange rates.

  • Credit card processing methods fit into three levels: Level 1, Level 2 and Level 3.
  • Each level is defined by the amount of information that is required or passed to complete a payment (with Level 1 having the lowest requirements and potentially the highest costs)
  • Level 2 and Level 3 card data provides more information for business, commercial, corporate, purchasing, and government cardholders.

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Level 2 & 3 Credit Card Processing

Level 2 Data

Level 2 data refers to a more detailed transaction designed to support business-to-business (B2B) payment processing. Many businesses and government offices require that their vendors accept detailed transactional information along with the sale. In addition to simplifying B2B credit card processing and transactions, it provides Level 2 data along with the sale allows access to lower interchange rates. Visa/MasterCard recognize that if you as a business are providing all of this extra information, the sale is more likely to be legitimate and less likely to be contested. As such, they’re willing to provide a lower cost for the sale! Processing Level 2 data requires either a standalone credit card terminal or our payment gateway that’s equipped to handle Level 2 data. Common interchange reductions are around 0.50% lower than typical sales. To qualify for Level 2 data, merchants will be required to append the data fields below with each transaction. Don’t worry, PayKings can configure your gateway to automatically pass this information through with each sale to make things simple:
  • Merchant Name
  • Transaction Amount
  • Tax Amount (Between 0.1% and 31% of the total amount)
  • Transaction Date
  • Customer Code or PO number
  • Merchant Zip Code

Level 3 Data

Level 3 data takes everything one step further. Most merchants will never have the opportunity to accept Level 3 cards, but if you’re processing in a B2B-heavy industry or if you accept a lot of Government cards, then having Level 3 data acceptance may help reduce your interchange costs even further. Often, Level 3 interchange rates are up to a full 1.00% lower than their standard counterparts! But, in order to gain access to Level 3 data, you’ll be required to input a fair amount of information on each transaction. In addition, only certain gateways can accommodate for Level 3 data. PayKings offers Level 3 support through our payment gateway. To qualify for Level 3 data, merchants will be required to enter all fields required for Level 2, plus the following:
  • Ship-From Zip Code
  • Destination Zip Code
  • Invoice Number
  • Order Number
  • Item Product Code
  • Item Commodity Code
  • Item Description
  • Item Quantity
  • Item Unit of Measure
  • Item Extended Amount
  • Freight Amount
  • Duty Amount

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