Disputes

Disputes

A dispute (sometimes called a chargeback) happens when a cardholder challenges a transaction with their bank or card provider. The card issuer opens a formal case and the payment is immediately reversed. The transaction amount, along with a separate dispute received fee levied by the card network, is taken from your account balance. 

You’ll have the chance to contest the dispute by providing evidence that the charge was valid. If you counter a dispute, a dispute countered fee applies, in addition to the dispute received fee. The cardholder’s bank reviews it and decides the dispute outcome. This can take up to 3 months.

When Stripe receives the decision, you receive an email. If you win the dispute, Stripe returns the dispute countered fee. Stripe typically does not return the dispute received fee. 

If a dispute is upheld, the card issuer’s decision is final and you will not be refunded.

If a transaction is disputed, you will see a notice in Encircle. You can manage the dispute in the Stripe dashboard, or in Encircle by following these steps:

1. Click on the transaction or the dispute notice up top.
2. You'll see the dispute details such as the reason for the dispute, your response due date, etc. Stripe surfaces some guidance here on resolving the dispute with the customer. If that is unsuccessful, you may:
   • Accept dispute: Submits a response to the issuing bank affirming that you aren’t contesting the refunded amount.
   • Counter dispute: Opens a form that guides you through the submission process, prompts you for evidence relevant to both the dispute and response type, and allows you to upload supporting files.

Countering a Dispute

1. On the first page of the response form, tell Stripe why you believe the dispute is in error and the product type of the original purchase. This information, along with the dispute category, helps Stripe recommend the most relevant evidence to support your challenge on the next page of the form. 

2. Confirm the cardholder's information.

3. The next page of the form has a dynamic set of sections representing the most relevant details you can provide for your individual case.

In the Supporting Files section, use the File Upload tool to attach evidence that matches the checklist of evidence types relevant to your dispute type and counter argument. For each uploaded file, specify which type of evidence it satisfies. You can only submit one file per type of evidence, so if you have several files representing one type of evidence, combine them into a single, multi-page file.

Consider the following guidelines to make sure your supporting files are effective:

• Consult the evidence recommendations for your specific dispute category.
• For fraudulent disputes in particular, if your dispute is Visa CE 3.0 eligible, look for the Required for CE 3.0 badge throughout the response form. In most cases, Stripe pre-populates these fields with the required data from your transaction history.
  • If the field is pre-populated, don’t edit it because you might affect eligibility.
  • If the field is empty, add the requested information, such as the product description.

If your dispute might be covered by the liability shift rule, we populate 3D Secure information such as the Electronic Commerce Indicator (ECI) automatically for you.

• Organize each piece of evidence according to the evidence type it satisfies—be as succinct as possible.
• Combine items of the same evidence type into a single file.
• Limit your evidence file size to the combined maximum of 4.5 MB.
• Limit your Mastercard evidence file length to the combined maximum of 19 pages.
• Banks evaluating the dispute won’t review any external content, so don’t include:
  • Audio or video files
  • Requests to call or email for more information
  • Links to click for further information (for example, file downloads or links to tracking information)

4. Review and submit your evidence. Click the checkbox to acknowledge your understanding that your response is final. After you submit it, Stripe automatically puts the evidence you provide into a format accepted by the issuing bank and submits it for consideration. At this point, you can’t amend what you’ve submitted or provide any additional information, so make sure to include every relevant detail.

Checking the Dispute Status

After you submit a response, the status of the dispute changes to In review. When the issuer informs Stripe of its decision, Stripe informs you of the outcome by email and by updating the dispute status to one of the following:

• won: Indicates that the bank decided in your favor and overturned the dispute. In this case, the issuing bank returns the debited chargeback amount to Stripe, and Stripe passes this amount back to you. For businesses in Mexico, the dispute fee might also be returned. Otherwise, the dispute fee isn’t returned.
• lost: Indicates that the bank decided in the account owner’s favor and upheld the dispute. In this case, the refund is permanent and the dispute fee isn’t returned.

For in-depth information regarding disputes, refer to Stripe's documentation.

Updated September 05, 2025 03:31