This guide walks you through what MOTO payments are, when to use them, how Address Verification Service (AVS) checks work alongside them, and how to configure everything in the Adyen Customer Area.

📞 What Is a MOTO Transaction?

A Mail Order/Telephone Order (MOTO) transaction is a card-not-present payment where the customer provides their order and payment details by phone, regular mail, or fax. By sharing this information, the cardholder gives the merchant permission to process the transaction on their behalf.

When a MOTO transaction is initiated, the payment terminal prompts the merchant to manually enter the shopper's card number and CVC code — no physical card tap or swipe is required.

Common Use Cases

Orders taken over the phone
Orders received by mail or fax
Processing virtual credit cards on the Japan Card Network (JCB)

✅ Requirements & Limitations

Before enabling MOTO for a merchant, review the following requirements and limitations:

Requirement	Details
Integration type	Terminal API integration with payment terminals, or a standalone terminal solution
PCI DSS compliance	The merchant must complete the PCI DSS Self-Assessment Questionnaire B-IP as part of their commercial contract. If unsure whether this has been completed, contact your ValPay Account Manager or Support Team.
Platforms setup	For Adyen for Platforms, terminals must be assigned to a store configured with the business line of the legal entity

⚠️ Limitations to Be Aware Of

AVS checks are not supported on Android payment terminals or legacy payment terminals.
AVS is supported by American Express, Discover, Mastercard, and Visa. In the US, UK, and Canada, all other card issuers also support it.

🔒 Risk Management

MOTO payments are considered higher risk than standard in-person transactions. Here's what partners and merchants need to understand:

No liability shift — The merchant is fully liable for any fraud-related chargebacks on MOTO transactions. There is no protection shift to the card issuer.
Risk scoring — If using Adyen's classic risk engine (RevenueProtect), every MOTO transaction receives a risk score from 0 to 100. Transactions are automatically declined when the score reaches 100. Risk rules can be configured to minimize fraud exposure.

Because of the increased liability, it's important that merchants using MOTO understand the risks before enabling this feature.

🔍 Address Verification Service (AVS)

What Is AVS?

An Address Verification Service (AVS) check is an optional layer of fraud protection that can be added to the MOTO payment flow. When AVS is enabled, the terminal prompts the merchant to enter the shopper's postal code (zip code) and house number. The card issuer then validates that information against the cardholder's billing address on file.

The result of the AVS check — whether it's a match, partial match, or no match — is returned in the payment response and is visible in the Adyen Customer Area under Transactions > Payments.

Important: Issuers Can Still Authorize on a Mismatch

It's possible for an issuer to authorize a payment even if the address data doesn't fully match. For this reason, the AVS result is surfaced to the merchant so they can review it and decide whether to proceed. If a capture delay is configured, the merchant can cancel the authorization before funds are captured.

AVS on Standalone Terminals

When MOTO with AVS is used on a standalone terminal, here's what the flow looks like:

The terminal prompts the merchant to enter the shopper's card number, CVC, postal code, and house number.
The issuer declines or authorizes the payment.
If the issuer did not decline, the terminal displays the AVS check result and prompts the merchant to Approve or Decline the transaction.
If the merchant selects Decline, Adyen automatically handles canceling the authorization — or, if the payment was already captured, refunding the shopper.

AVS Card Network Support

Card Network	AVS Supported?
American Express	✅ Yes
Discover	✅ Yes
Mastercard	✅ Yes
Visa	✅ Yes
All other issuers (US, UK, Canada only)	✅ Yes
Android terminals	❌ Not supported
Legacy terminals	❌ Not supported

⚙️ How to Configure MOTO, AVS & Capture Delay

All three settings need to be configured in the Adyen Customer Area. Work through the steps below in order.

Step 1: Enable MOTO Payments

Log in to your Adyen Customer Area.
Go to In-person payments > Terminal settings (or select a specific terminal) and click Payment features.
Under MOTO payments, select Enabled.
Optionally, enter a MOTO max amount to set the maximum transaction amount allowed for MOTO payments on this terminal.
Click Save.

Step 2: Enable AVS Response Data (Required for AVS Checks)

To receive the AVS result in your payment response, you need to enable the additional data fields in your Customer Area:

In your Customer Area, go to Developers > Additional data.
Select both Acquirer result and Raw acquirer result.
Click Save configuration.

Once configured, the AVS check result will be returned in the payment response and visible in Customer Area > Transactions > Payments.

Step 3: Configure a Capture Delay (Recommended)

Configuring a capture delay gives the merchant a window to review the AVS result and cancel the authorization before funds are captured — reducing the risk of processing a fraudulent transaction.

If you need help setting up capture delay for a merchant, reach out to your ValPay Partner team.

📋 Quick Reference

Feature	What It Does	Where to Configure
MOTO Payments	Allows card-not-present transactions entered manually on the terminal	In-person payments > Terminal settings > Payment features
MOTO Max Amount	Sets a cap on the maximum amount allowed per MOTO transaction	In-person payments > Terminal settings > Payment features
AVS Check	Verifies shopper's postal code and house number against their card billing address	Enabled automatically when MOTO is on; AVS response data configured under Developers > Additional data
Capture Delay	Creates a window to review AVS results and cancel before funds are captured	Contact ValPay Partner team to configure

💬 Need Help?

If you have questions about enabling MOTO or AVS for a merchant, or are unsure whether their PCI DSS requirements have been met, reach out to your ValPay Partner team: