Visa CEDP Verification Paused, But You Can Still Save on Interchange

Visa’s Commercial Enhanced Data Program promised B2B merchants a clear path to lower interchange. If you submit accurate transaction data on commercial payments, you’ll earn “verified” status and have access to reduced rates.

This validation program launched in April 2025, and merchants had ample warning to fix inaccurate data ahead of the October enforcement deadline. 

But less than one month later, Visa paused the verification process entirely. 

The pause is still in effect, and we’re reaching another CEDP milestone with the Level 2 program being eliminated.

What You Need to Know

• Visa stopped adding new merchants to its “verified” CEDP list on November 11, 2025.
• Non-verified merchants submitting accurate data are still eligible for a reduction in the form of a post-settlement statement credit.
• If you were verified before November 11th, nothing changes, and qualifying transactions remain eligible for reduced interchange rates.
• The Level 2 data program officially sunsets in April 2026, meaning you need to submit accurate Level 3 data moving forward to qualify for CEDP rates. 

What the CEDP Pause Actually Means

Visa paused new verifications to make internal adjustments to its methodology for determining whether a merchant’s data consistently meets the program’s standards. 

Merchants who had already achieved verified status before November 11, 2025 are unaffected. Their status remains intact, and their transactions continue qualifying for CEDP rates at the interchange level without interruption.

But everyone else working toward verification is stuck waiting, with no timeline from Visa on when the pause will be lifted.

How CEDP Savings Work Without Verified Status

Unverified merchants can still save money by submitting accurate Level 3 transaction data that meets CEDP standards. But the way you achieve those savings will be a bit different. 

Instead of automatically qualifying for the reduced interchange rates, you can get a credit on your statement through Visa’s lagged interchange process:

Here’s how it works:

1. Every commercial card transaction initially settles at the standard interchange rate, with no CEDP discount applied upfront.
2. Visa then validates the Level 3 data submitted post-settlement.
3. If the data passes, an interchange credit posts to your account (typically 10-15 days after the initial settlement data).

So if you’re an unverified merchant that’s submitting Level 3 data for qualifying transactions, you should see a Visa CEDP Verified credit on your statements. 

Why Some Merchants Aren’t Receiving CEDP Credits

Even though Visa has paused new CEDP verifications, merchants can still qualify for Commercial Enhanced Data Program savings by submitting accurate Level 3 data with qualifying transactions. 

While the savings come in the form of a credit instead of reduced interchange, the net cost should be the same. 

But there’s an important detail that many processors don’t explain.

Just because your processor claims to support Level 3 data doesn’t mean your transactions are actually passing Visa’s validation standards. The entire purpose of the CEDP verification program was to prevent processors from advertising “automatic” qualification without submitting the required fields correctly. 

If you think you’re submitting the right data but you don’t see CEDP credits on your statement, it’s likely for one of the following reasons:

• Required Level 3 data fields are missing
• Data format is incorrect
• Your gateway or software is not passing the data properly
• Credits are not being posted correctly by your processor

We’ve also seen cases in the past where credits were applied incorrectly as fees by the processor, meaning the merchant actually paid more. While we haven’t seen these “mistakes” widely with CEDP yet, it’s something worth watching for. 

CEDP Verification is Tied to Your Processor

It’s also worth noting that your CEDP verification status is tied to the processor, not just your business itself. 

If you were verified by Visa before November 11, 2025, your status remains active as long as you stay with the same processor and continue submitting accurate data.

But if you switch processors, your verified status does not transfer.

Under normal circumstances this would just mean completing the verification process again with the new provider. But since Visa has paused new CEDP verifications, merchants who switch processors right now will lose their verified status with no clear timeline to get it back. 

We rarely recommend switching processors anyway, though this is just another reason why you should think twice about it. Especially if a large portion of your volume comes from corporate, purchasing, or government cards. Losing your verified status even temporarily can increase your costs significantly and offset any potential savings you hoped to get from a new processor. 

April 2026 Update: Level 2 is Ending, and Level 3 is Required for Qualification

April 2026 marks another important milestone for the Commercial Enhanced Data Program.

Visa is eliminating the Level 2 data program entirely, which means moving forward, Level 3 data will be required to qualify for CEDP interchange savings.

For merchants that previously relied on Level 2 data, this change raises the bar for compliance. Combined with the current pause in new CEDP verifications, this makes it more important than ever to confirm that:

• Your processor actually supports full Level 3 data
• Your transactions are passing Visa’s validation
• CEDP credits are appearing on your statement

For B2B merchants, government contractors, wholesalers, and service providers that accept a high volume of commercial cards, these details can have a significant impact on your processing costs. 

Final Thoughts

I’m honestly surprised that Visa paused the new CEDP verification so quickly. The November 11, 2025 pause was less than one month after the October 17, 2025 deadline where merchants needed to be verified to qualify for reduced rates. 

And I’m more surprised that it’s still paused months later.

The program was announced so far in advance to give merchants time to get things straightened out. But apparently Visa didn’t have everything figured out on their end.

At the end of the day, unverified merchants can’t be too upset.

You’re still eligible for savings. However, those savings can only come in the form of a statement credit instead of lower interchange rates applied upfront. 

Being a verified merchant and qualifying for those interchange categories at the time of the transaction is obviously cleaner. But for now, the lagged interchange process is the only option for unverified merchants until Visa lifts its verification pause.

I also think it’s worth mentioning that lots of merchants put a little too much faith in their processors to help them with this stuff. While you’d like to think processors would be helpful, lots of merchants got stuck and failed to be verified prior to the pause because processors dropped the ball. 

So even if you think you’re submitting the right data now, don’t assume your processor is accurately applying CEDP credits to your account. If the credits aren’t there, something is wrong. 

I’m happy to audit your statements for free to see if you should be getting savings that aren’t being applied.