How does Stripe check the billing address?
Stripe passes the billing address to the card-issuing bank through the AVS (Address Verification System) protocol. The bank compares the submitted data against the address registered when the card was issued, and returns one of several response codes:
- Y — full match (street and postal code)
- A — street matches, postal code does not
- Z — postal code matches, street does not
- N — neither matches
- U — bank does not support AVS (Unavailable)
Stripe forwards this response to the merchant, and the merchant decides whether to accept or decline the payment. Many merchants reject transactions with code N, and some also reject code U.
Why do foreign cards often fail address verification?
- Bank doesn't support AVS. Most banks outside the US, UK, and Canada don't support AVS — they return code U. Strict merchants treat this as a mismatch.
- No address registered with the bank. Many banks don't store a full postal address as part of card account data.
- Address format differences. Even if the address is correct, line order, abbreviations, and postal code format may not match.
- Address is outdated. You moved but never updated your details with the bank.
Step-by-step instructions to fix the error
- Confirm your address with your bank. Ask your bank exactly which address is stored for your card. It may be a registration address rather than your current residence.
- Enter the address exactly as your bank has it. Pay attention to abbreviations, street name spelling, and line order.
- For foreign cards, try the postal code only. Many Stripe-powered sites only validate the ZIP or postal code. Enter just that — without a full street address.
- Try 00000 as the ZIP. If your bank doesn't support AVS, some merchants accept this placeholder value.
- Contact the merchant. Explain that your bank does not support AVS. Some larger services can disable AVS validation for a specific transaction.
- Use a Marix card. Marix virtual cards come with a billing address that passes AVS checks correctly in Stripe.
FAQ
Can Stripe accept a payment when AVS returns Unavailable (code U)? Yes. The merchant makes that call. Many merchants accept U-coded responses, especially for international cards. Stricter merchants do not.
Does Stripe store my billing address? Yes. Stripe stores the billing address as part of the Customer or PaymentMethod object, and reuses it automatically in subsequent charges.
How do I know what address to enter for a Marix card? Your Marix account dashboard shows the billing address next to each card's credentials. Use that address exactly when prompted at checkout.
Billing address errors are a common pain for cardholders from countries where AVS isn't supported. Marix virtual cards solve this problem for good — they come with a valid, AVS-compatible billing address built in.