Glossary

Debit cards are usually directly linked to a current account, from which the corresponding amount is debited within a few days when a cashless payment or cash withdrawal is made.
The local credit institutions usually combine different procedures on a debit card to increase its flexibility when paying. A classic combination is, for example, girocard with Maestro or V PAY and GeldKarte including girogo. Cards with the girocard function can also be used for electronic direct debiting.
It is becoming increasingly important for merchants to offer acceptance of Maestro and V PAY in addition to the girocard at the POS, as there are now more and more cards that are exclusively equipped with these payment methods.

This is the alternative to the girocard procedure that has been inexpensive for acceptors up to now. During the payment process, the terminal reads the account number and bank code from the magnetic strip or the chip and the cardholder gives consent to direct debit from his account with his signature.

In this country, more than 92 million girocards and customer cards from banks and savings banks are already equipped with the GeldKarte function. This allows the customer to load a credit of up to 200 euros onto the chip and use the card as an electronic purse.

girogo is the GeldKarte variant for contactless payment based on NFC technology. With girogo, the cardholder can pay amounts up to 25 euros without a PIN or signature. The cards, which are primarily issued by the savings banks, can already be loaded contactlessly with up to 200 euros at all German ATMs, at the card terminals at the POS as well as at special GeldKarte loading terminals or on the Internet with a chip card reader.

Mastercard is one of the leading credit cards worldwide. Around 500,000 points of acceptance in Germany accept Mastercard – at the point of sale as well as in e-commerce and mail order. The security standard “Mastercard SecureCode™” provides additional security in online commerce.
For some time now, Mastercard has also been available as a variant for contactless payment with PayPass. It works on the basis of NFC technology. Worldwide, there are already 92 million Mastercards with PayPass function. In Germany, more than 1 million cards have been issued to customers so far, who can conveniently pay amounts up to 50 euros contactlessly. Above 50 euros, the payment process is additionally confirmed by PIN or signature.

More than 92 million solvent business people and tourists worldwide pay with an American Express credit card. They particularly appreciate the fact that their purchases are not limited by a fixed spending limit. American Express customers like to use their card for spontaneous purchases in addition to paying for travel and entertainment expenses and spend more on average than holders of other credit cards. With American Express contactless, the cardholder can pay amounts up to 50 euros without a PIN or signature. The card must then be inserted into the terminal.

This is where you enter the card details when making a payment, e.g. in the Virtual Terminal or your ticketing software. If you accept MoTo payments and use the Virtual Terminal for this purpose, you do not need to make any specific changes because these types of transactions are exempt from SCA.

If you use “Payment URL” via our Virtual Terminal, there is no need for you to take any action.
If the payment URL is triggered via the SOAP API to identify the cardholder, the merchant should simply use the following element: element ‘AuthenticateTransaction’ = true in the paymentURL creation message:

true

If you use our Connect solution, check in your webshop or plugin whether you have deactivated 3-D Secure there. 3 D Secure must be activated. The IPG and the shop module will do the rest for you.

If you often have customers from certain non-euro countries as guests in your shop or hotel, you can offer them a special service with DCC, Dynamic Currency Conversion: payment in the home currency.
Process
When paying with Visa or Mastercard credit cards, your terminal recognises the card’s country of origin and the currency of the account on the basis of the credit card number and automatically converts the euro amount into the customer’s local currency. Both amounts, the exchange rate and the exchange fees are shown on the terminal display as well as on the payment receipts. Your account will be credited in euros as usual.
The requirements
To be able to offer DCC, you need a DCC-capable terminal and a card acceptance contract for Visa and Mastercard, supplemented by a corresponding agreement.
Who is DCC suitable for?
DCC is ideal for all merchants and service providers who accept credit cards and have regular customer traffic from abroad – for example:
Airport and railway station shops
Luxury goods retailers
Car rental companies
Hotels and restaurants
Traders and service providers in the tourism business
Shops near the border

All advantages at a glance
For traders:
Revenue share – you receive remuneration for every DCC transaction
Credit in euros
Customer loyalty through more service

For cardholders:
The amount displayed is the final purchase amount
Daily updated rates in line with the market
Easier expense reporting for business travellers
No additional exchange rate fees

With the dynamic currency conversion DCC, your foreign customers feel at home, because they can pay with their credit card immediately in their home currency. This means more transparency and many advantages for your customers and for you.

The girocard symbol was introduced in 2007 by the German banking industry as a new European acceptance mark to facilitate the international acceptance of German debit cards in the SEPA area. It thus succeeds the electronic cash symbol that had been used until then for the German debit payment system. Merchants benefit from the card issuer’s “payment guarantee” when payment is authorised by card and PIN.

The debit card from the Mastercard product family with the distinctive blue and red symbol is the world’s leading international debit card. Its popularity is also growing steadily in Europe: Maestro is already used for cashless payments at around 7 million acceptance points here. Merchants benefit from the card issuer’s “payment guarantee” when payment is authorised by card and PIN.
Cards that display the contactless symbol and/or PayPass lettering next to the Maestro logo also enable contactless payment.

The chip and PIN-based debit card from Visa, which was specially designed for Europe, offers merchants a “payment guarantee” when payment is authorised and also grants cardholders a high level of security through the modern EMV chip technology. During the payment process, the terminal reads the necessary card data from the chip and the cardholder legitimises himself by entering his PIN.
Cards that display the contactless symbol next to the V PAY logo also enable contactless payment.

People have been paying with Visa in Germany since 1981. Holders can use their Visa card to pay directly at the point of sale, on the Internet or in mail-order businesses. The security standard “Verified by Visa®” provides additional security in online commerce.
Visa is also available with payWave as a variant for contactless payment, which works on the basis of NFC technology. Customers can pay up to an amount of 50 euros without a PIN or signature. Above 50 euros, the payment process is confirmed by PIN or signature.

Visa Electron is an online-only card. Since this card lacks the embossing, it can only be used at electronic terminals that settle online transactions. The cardholder legitimises himself by entering the PIN or with his signature. Visa Electron can also be used in e-commerce, but not for mail order or telephone transactions.

Discover Card is a credit card issued predominantly in the USA and used by over 50 million cardholders. Merchants in Germany who accept Discover Card benefit specifically from these international customers.

Diners Club credit card holders also benefit from unlimited use without a fixed spending limit. Customers of the oldest credit card have above-average purchasing power. Diners Club International is part of the Discover network. The US Discover card is also part of this network.

JCB is a credit card widely used in the Asian region. Around 58 million cards are accepted by 11 million acceptance points in 189 countries. JCB cards are common in Japan and the USA, but especially in Korea, China, Taiwan, Thailand and Singapore. In Europe, JCB acceptance is recommended especially in regions with a high volume of travel from these countries.

The only Chinese credit card, which is also issued in Turkey, Japan and Russia, is by far the most issued card worldwide with 2 billion copies. The cards are correspondingly relevant for trade and gastronomy. Statistics show that around 10% of overnight stays in Germany are booked by guests from Asia. The Chinese clientele, who love to travel, also has a lot of purchasing power: on average, they spend 250 euros per purchase.

If you use the API, the programming must be adapted in any case, even if you are currently already using 3-D Secure via the API interface!