Unscheduled Card on File (UCoF)

What Unscheduled Card on File is

UCoF is a merchant-initiated card payment using details the customer previously agreed you could store and use. You initiate a later charge when a business event occurs, without the customer actively participating in that payment.

The amount can be fixed or variable, but the charge does not happen on a scheduled or regularly recurring date. An automatic account top-up when a balance falls below a set threshold is one example. Card on File (CoF) is the broader practice of storing card details; UCoF is a specific way to use them.

UCoF means the event triggers the charge, not a fixed date on the calendar.

How a UCoF payment works

The customer first completes a cardholder-initiated transaction or account verification, agrees to future merchant-initiated charges, and has the card details stored. If the initial payment or required account verification is declined, Visa's stored-credential framework says you cannot treat the credential as stored for later use.

When the agreed event occurs, your business submits a new payment using the stored credential and identifies it as an unscheduled merchant-initiated transaction. For Visa transactions, the framework specifies POS Environment value "C" and POS Entry Mode Code "10" for subsequent UCoF payments. These indicators identify the transaction type to the issuer.

What you must explain to the customer

Before storing the card, get the customer's agreement and explain how you will use it. For UCoF consent, disclose the event that triggers a charge, the amount or how you calculate it, and how the customer can cancel. Include applicable fees, your business location and relevant refund or cancellation terms.

Keep the agreement and notify the customer when its terms change. For example, if an account top-up is triggered at a balance threshold, state that threshold and how the charge amount is determined. A charge outside the agreed trigger or calculation can lead to a customer dispute.

What UCoF means for your costs

UCoF does not set a separate processing fee, rate or statement line. Your card processor still charges for the transaction under your normal card-processing arrangement, and the available guidance does not establish a universal UCoF statement descriptor.

Accurate transaction indicators give the issuer context that the customer previously agreed to the merchant-initiated charge. Visa says stored-credential identification can improve issuer visibility and approval decisions. It does not guarantee approval or eliminate processing costs.

What you can actually change

You cannot control whether the issuer approves each charge, but you can keep the payment within the customer's agreement and submit it with the correct stored-credential indicators.

• Record the customer's consent, the triggering event, the amount or calculation method, and cancellation terms.
• Submit each charge only after the agreed event occurs, and use the correct UCoF indicators for the card network.
• Reconcile submitted UCoF charges against payment results and your processor statement to spot declines or unexpected processing charges.

1. 01
   Document the trigger. Keep a record of what event authorizes each future charge and how its amount is calculated.
2. 02
   Use the right indicators. Confirm your payment setup marks subsequent UCoF transactions as merchant-initiated stored-credential payments.
3. 03
   Reconcile each charge. Compare payment outcomes with your statement so you can identify declined charges and unexpected processing costs.

Frequently asked questions