Sometimes, payments don’t go through as expected. Declined transactions can happen for different reasons, but the good news is most of them can be fixed quickly.
Use the table below to see the main reasons why a transaction fails and the steps you can take to resolve it.
If a payment doesn’t go through, we’ll send a push notification right away.
Tap the notification—or open the transaction in the Pemo app or desktop—to see the exact reason and clear steps to fix it. On desktop you can use our "declined" quick filter to see all declined transactions and then tap to see the reason why it failed and what action is needed
Why transactions fail—and how to fix them
Decline reason | What it means | Action (Team member) | Action (Admin) |
Insufficient funds | Wallet balance was too low. | Ask your admin for a top-up, then retry after funds land. | Top up the wallet or move budget to this card. |
Card is expired | The card’s expiry date has passed. | Use another card or request a replacement. Update saved cards. See how to request a card. | Issue a replacement card and notify the user to update saved details. |
Card frozen | The card is locked by you or an admin. | Unfreeze in the app. Then retry. See how to unfreeze your card. | Unfreeze the card in the app. |
Transaction limit exceeded | Amount exceeds the per-transaction cap. | Split the purchase or request a higher per-transaction limit. | Raise the per-transaction cap for the card/policy. |
Max amount limit reached | You hit a daily/weekly/monthly spend or count limit. | Wait for the reset or request a higher limit. | Adjust the cardholder’s cycle limits. |
Card terminated | The card is permanently closed. | Use another card and request a new one if needed. | Issue a new card and review the termination reason. |
Suspicious charge blocked | Fraud engine flagged the payment as risky. | Confirm merchant and amount. Retry once. If blocked again, contact Support with merchant, amount, and time. | Review fraud alerts, verify legitimacy, and coordinate with issuer/Support to allow if appropriate. |
Card holder not active | Emirates ID not updated. | Update Emirates ID in the system. | Ensure Emirates ID is updated in records. |
Incorrect expiry date | Entered expiry doesn’t match the card. | Re-enter MM/YY and update saved cards. See how to view card details | No config change needed; confirm the card is active and advise the user. |
Incorrect CVV | CVV entered was wrong. | Enter the CVV exactly as shown. See how to view card details | If issues persist, consider reissuing the card or rotating virtual card details. |
Restricted merchant category | Merchant’s MCC is blocked by policy. | Use a permitted merchant or request access for this MCC. | Allow the MCC for the card/team policy if compliant. |
Card not active | The card hasn’t been activated yet. | Activate in the app. For physical cards, complete a first chip-and-PIN if required. See how to activate your card. | Confirm activation pathways and nudge the user to complete activation. |
Country not allowed | Purchases from this country are blocked. | Request country access from your admin. See how to request a change to your card limits. | Enable the country in card/policy controls as appropriate. |
Wrong card details | Number, name, expiry, or CVV don’t match. | Re-enter details exactly and update saved cards. See how to view card details | No config change needed; confirm correct details were used. |
Transaction paused for review | Payment held for manual review by issuer. | Avoid repeated attempts. If urgent, contact Support with merchant, amount, timestamp. | Check issuer portal/logs and escalate with Support; advise user when to retry. |
ATM not allowed | Cash withdrawals disabled for this card. | Pay online/POS or request ATM access from your admin. See how to request ATM access. | Enable ATM withdrawals for the card/policy if permitted. |