Do Not Honor
The issuing bank has declined the transaction without specifying a detailed reason. This is the single most common decline code, accounting for a large share of all card declines across the industry.
Why does code 05 occur?
- Insufficient funds (most common underlying reason)
- Risk assessment failure by issuer fraud models
- Spending limit exceeded for the day or billing period
- Card not activated or recently reissued
- International transaction blocked by issuer default settings
Can this transaction be retried?
Yes, code 05 is a soft, retryable decline. You can retry the transaction after a delay of 24-48 hours. Card networks typically allow up to 15 retries (Visa) or 10 retries (Mastercard) per billing cycle for soft declines. Use exponential backoff to space out retries.
What merchants should do
Ask the customer to try another payment method or contact their bank. For recurring billing, retry after 24-48 hours. Consider using network tokenization to improve approval rates on retries.
What cardholders should do
Contact your bank to understand why the transaction was declined — the reason can range from insufficient funds to a fraud flag. Try again after speaking to your bank, or use a different card.
Code 05 at a glance
Response Code
05
Name
Do Not Honor
Category
soft decline
Retryable
Yes — after delay
Related Decline Codes
Refer to Issuer
The issuing bank has flagged the transaction for review. The cardholder should contact their bank to authorize or clarify the transaction.
Insufficient Funds
The cardholder's account does not have enough available balance to cover the transaction amount. This is one of the most frequent decline reasons, accounting for a significant share of all soft declines.
Suspected Fraud
The issuing bank's fraud detection system has flagged this transaction as potentially fraudulent and declined it as a precautionary measure.
Activity Count Limit Exceeded
The cardholder has exceeded the maximum number of transactions allowed within a specific time period (velocity limit). This is a fraud prevention measure.
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Find a SWIFT codeDecline Code 05 FAQ
Frequently asked questions about decline code 05: Do Not Honor.