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Shopify Chargeback Protection: How to Respond and Win

Shopify chargebacks: the fee and when it comes back, the 7–21 day evidence window, what Shopify Protect covers, and how dispute-rate limits work.

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The short version

To contest a Shopify Payments chargeback, add your evidence from the chargeback banner in your admin before the due date, typically 7 to 21 days after the chargeback is filed; if you add nothing, Shopify still submits the order details on that date. The disputed amount and a chargeback fee ($15 USD in the United States) leave your next payout at once; a win returns the disputed amount in your next payout after the decision, and Shopify's resolution page says the fee comes back with it. If the customer is right, accept instead: the amount goes back to them and the fee is not refunded.

Shopify Protect reimburses fraudulent and unrecognized chargebacks automatically, but only on eligible Shop Pay orders of US stores; won or lost, every dispute counts toward your chargeback rate, and an NDRP-inclusive rate of 1.5% or higher over 90 days can enroll your store in a network dispute resolution program.

What to Do With This Chargeback
Key Takeaway: Check the payment route first, because PayPal Express Checkout and other third-party disputes are handled outside Shopify. A protected Shop Pay order with a fraudulent or unrecognized chargeback needs nothing from you. Accept only when the customer is right; otherwise add evidence before the due date, because a win brings the disputed amount back.

Read the rows from the top: the first one that matches your order is your move. If the due date has already passed, nothing more can be added to the response.

Your situationPickWhy
The disputed order was paid with PayPal Express CheckoutAnswer it in PayPal, not in Shopify (Shopify's US PayPal Wallet page names the PayPal Business Center)Express Checkout disputes might follow different processes and timelines, and PayPal Seller Protection isn't managed by Shopify; PayPal Wallet disputes in the US and France are managed in your Shopify admin, although a claim the customer escalates is resolved by PayPal
It was paid through another third-party payment providerAsk that provider how to send evidenceThe Shopify admin manages chargebacks only for Shopify Payments
The order shows Protected by Shopify Protect, and the reason is Fraudulent or UnrecognizedDo nothingThe disputed amount and the chargeback fee are credited back to you immediately
The customer is right: you never shipped, charged twice or skipped a refund you promisedAccept the chargebackYou can accept without evidence; the amount goes back to the customer and the fee is not refunded
Anything else, with the due date still aheadContest it with evidenceA win returns the disputed amount in your next payout, and Shopify's resolution page says the fee too

The email went to your store contact address, the disputed amount and a fee are already gone from your next payout, and the chargeback banner on the order shows a due date. With a chargeback open now, check how long you have, find the evidence that answers your reason, then work through the response checklist. After that come the two things that decide how often it happens again: Shopify Protect and your chargeback rate.

What Is a Shopify Chargeback, and Who Decides It?

Key takeaway

Shopify isn't involved in the decision. The customer's bank and credit card company rule on the evidence you submit, and Shopify submits your response to them. A dispute arrives in one of two forms, and they cost very different things.

Chargeback vs inquiry on Shopify Payments
ChargebackInquiry
Money taken when it opensThe disputed amount and the chargeback fee, immediatelyNothing while the bank investigates
Can a refund end it?No: Shopify's resolution, admin and reasons pages say you can't issue a refund after a chargeback starts; its responding guide says you can but might still loseA full refund means the cardholder can't start a chargeback; a partial refund doesn't
Time to a decisionUp to 75 days after you submitUsually 65–75 days, but it might take longer
Who decidesThe cardholder's bank and card companyThe cardholder's bank and card company

Shopify Help Center (Responding to chargebacks and inquiries; Resolving a chargeback or inquiry), read October 8, 2026.

You can manage chargebacks and inquiries in the Shopify admin only if you use Shopify Payments.

In the admin each dispute carries one of five statuses: open (you can still add evidence), submitted, won, lost and resolved, which means a network dispute resolution program settled it automatically. Staff with the Disputes > Manage permission can receive the Order dispute updates notification, sent when a dispute is opened, escalated, reopened, won, lost or prevented, and when evidence is submitted. On stores that existed before that notification, only the owner gets it until you add recipients.

What a Chargeback Costs and How Long You Have

Key takeaway

Not every dispute has a response option, but a Shopify Payments chargeback you can respond to moves through these five stages, whatever its reason:

1
Filed
Shopify Payments withdraws the disputed amount and the chargeback fee at once, from your next available payout, and emails your store contact address.
2
Evidence window
You typically have 7 to 21 days to add evidence in the admin. Order details from your admin are already in the response.
3
Submitted
The response goes to the card company on the due date, or earlier if you click Submit now. Nothing can be added after that.
4
Bank decision
The cardholder's bank decides on your evidence, which can take up to 75 days after you submit.
5
Outcome
Won: the disputed amount returns in your next payout after the decision, and Shopify's resolution page says the fee does too. Partial win: some of the disputed amount is returned. Lost: nothing comes back, and there is no appeal.

How much does a Shopify chargeback cost?

Key takeaway

A chargeback costs you two things at once: the disputed amount and a fee. In the United States the fee is $15 USD per chargeback, and both leave your next available payout as soon as the chargeback is filed. The fee depends on where your Shopify Payments account is: Shopify's fee table lists 39 countries and regions, so look up your own row there rather than assuming the US figure.

When your balance can't cover the debit, Shopify debits your bank account in 17 countries, including the United States, and if that first attempt fails, a second attempt follows after 3 business days; in all other countries the amount comes out of future payouts until it is covered. That is how a single chargeback can push a payout below zero. If the customer's card is from another country than your store, the disputed amount is also subject to exchange rates.

On a thin margin the fee is the smaller part of the loss: the product, the shipping and the disputed amount can all be gone. How that plays out across an order's profit is worked through in the dispute line of a dropshipping P&L.

Do you get the chargeback fee back if you win?

Key takeaway

Shopify's own pages disagree here. The process, admin and resolution pages, read on October 8, 2026, all say a win returns the fee: the resolution page puts it as the full chargeback amount plus the chargeback fee coming back in your next payout after the decision. The chargebacks overview, read the same day, is softer: you get the disputed amount back, and Shopify might refund the fee depending on your country or region.

The disagreement doesn't change the decision to contest. The resolution page says that when you accept a chargeback you aren't refunded for the fee, so outside Shopify Protect, winning the dispute is the route by which the fee can come back. After a won decision, read the next payout — the resolution page says that is where the amount and the fee arrive, and how Shopify pays you covers when payouts land and what gets deducted.

How long do you have to respond to a chargeback?

Key takeaway

Shopify gives the window as typically 7 to 21 days after the chargeback is filed, and the exact date for your dispute is the one in the banner. Four rules govern that clock:

  • The date is in your store's timezone, and when no time is displayed the deadline is 11:59 PM on that date.
  • Shopify submits on the due date regardless. Order information from your admin goes to the card company even if you add no evidence yourself.
  • Submitting early locks the response. After Submit now, you can't edit your evidence.
  • The deadline is hard. Once it passes, you can't submit any further evidence.

After you submit, the bank can take up to 75 days to rule, and its ruling is final: there is no appeal process. A win is not always the end, because the customer's bank can dispute the same transaction again. Shopify can't request early resolution for American Express disputes or for Visa disputes with a Fraudulent reason code; in these cases, gathering a withdrawal letter from the customer's bank won't expedite the process, and the chargeback status updates on its own through the standard banking timeline.

Closing the store doesn't stop the clock. A closed or paused store still receives chargeback emails, and chargebacks can still be filed against earlier transactions after deactivation, but you have to reactivate the store to contest them — the conditions are in whether a deactivated store can still submit evidence.

What Evidence Answers Each Chargeback Reason

Key takeaway

Find the reason your banner shows, then lead with the evidence in the third column.

Chargeback reasons and the evidence to put first
Reason in the bannerWhat the customer claimsEvidence to put first
FraudulentThey didn't authorize the charge, which can happen if the card was stolen. Shopify calls it the most common reason.AVS and CVV results that match the card, device and IP data consistent with earlier orders, delivery confirmation to the billing address
UnrecognizedThey don't recognize your merchant name or location on their statementContact them first; if they agree to drop it, still submit evidence with their statement, plus the fulfillment date, billing information, IP address and tracking
DuplicateThey were charged twice, or paid another way as wellTransaction logs showing one charge, or separate orders; if one charge was an authorization hold, explain that it was temporary
Subscription canceledThey were charged after cancelingThe subscription agreement they accepted, your cancelation policy, and evidence that no cancelation request exists
Product not receivedThey never got what they paid forPhysical goods: carrier, tracking number and delivery status. Digital products: access logs. Services: booking and completion records
Product unacceptableIt was defective, damaged or significantly different from your store's descriptionYour listing as it looked at purchase, pre-shipment photos, and — if they went straight to the bank — evidence that they never contacted you
Credit not processedA refund or credit they expected never arrivedThe refund transaction record (timestamps, amount, confirmation number) and the refund policy they agreed to at checkout
GeneralThe amount was wrong, there was a processing error, or another issueAn itemized receipt and a record of the final amount shown at checkout

Shopify Help Center: Responding by dispute type and Reasons for a chargeback or inquiry, read October 8, 2026.

Shopify counts these categories differently on two pages. Its chargeback reasons page lists eight, including Unrecognized, while its guide to responding by dispute type says chargebacks fall into one of seven categories and has no separate Unrecognized entry. Answer the reason your banner actually shows: in the order's chargeback details, clicking the reason code opens Sidekick's guidance for that dispute.

How to Respond to a Chargeback in Shopify

Key takeaway

A response is three decisions in a row: whether to contest at all, which files to send, and when to submit. The checklist at the end of this section puts them in order.

Should you contest or accept a chargeback?

Key takeaway

Accept when the claim is valid. If you agree the customer is right — the order never shipped, a duplicate charge was real, a refund you promised never went out — click Accept chargeback in the banner. The disputed amount returns to the customer and you aren't refunded for the fee.

Accepted by mistake? If the deadline hasn't passed, contact Shopify Support immediately and ask for the chargeback to be un-accepted.

Refunding is not a third way out, and Shopify's pages differ on it. The resolution page, the admin page and the reasons page say you can't issue a refund after a chargeback starts; the credit-not-processed section of the responding guide says that if you owe the customer a refund, you can still issue one from the admin and might lose the chargeback anyway. The resolution page offers accepting the chargeback, which returns the disputed amount to the customer, or having the cardholder drop the chargeback first and then refunding.

Contest everything else, and submit even if the customer says it's over. Shopify asks you to send evidence in every case, including when the customer says they have canceled the chargeback. Evidence raises your odds; it does not decide the case:

Banks have the discretion to rule in the customer's favor, even when you provide delivery confirmation or other compelling proof.
Shopify — Responding to chargebacks and inquiries — Shopify Help Center ·

Nor is there an official figure for your odds. No Shopify page we have found publishes the share of chargebacks merchants win — as of October 8, 2026 we read the chargeback and Shopify Protect sections of the Help Center, its fraud-prevention pages and the Shopify Payments product page — so this guide gives no win rate.

What files does Shopify accept as evidence?

Key takeaway

Shopify's guidelines for evidence files:

  • Formats: PDF, JPEG or PNG only; every PDF has fewer than 50 pages.
  • Size: each file no larger than 2 MB, all files together no larger than 4 MB.
  • One file per type of evidence — combine several screenshots of one kind into a single image or PDF.
  • Don't include audio, video or external links, or requests to call or email you. Screenshot tracking pages and customer messages instead.

Order the response so the strongest proof is seen first. Shopify's recommended sequence has four blocks: direct proof (delivery confirmation, tracking screenshots, a refund record, usage logs), customer acknowledgment, policy documentation the customer agreed to, and supporting context. Label every piece clearly instead of leaving it as an unnamed attachment.

Shopify fills in what your admin knows — products, customer details, addresses, IP address, fulfillment details, a shipping tracking PDF for orders with a tracking number, refunds, the customer's order history — but that evidence comes only from your admin. Messages with the customer, where the customer agreed to your policies, a carrier delivery photo or signature that isn't already in the shipping tracking PDF, access logs and your listing at the time of purchase have to come from you.

Chargeback response checklist

Key takeaway

Steps one to three can end the job early — a PayPal Express Checkout order or a protected fraud chargeback stops at step two. Steps five to seven are where the time goes, so start them as soon as the due date is on paper.

Shopify chargeback response checklistTick each step off as you work through one dispute; your progress is saved in this browser.

Shopify chargeback response checklist

Tick each step off as you work through one dispute; your progress is saved in this browser.

0 of 7 done
  1. In Orders, filter by Chargeback and inquiry status set to Open to list the disputes Shopify hasn't sent to the card company yet.

  2. Confirm the order was paid through Shopify Payments and read its Shopify Protect status before you spend time on evidence.

  3. The due date in the chargeback banner is in your store's timezone and ends at 11:59 PM when no time is shown.

  4. Click the reason code for Sidekick's guidance, then decide whether the customer's claim is valid.

  5. Add what the automatic response lacks: customer messages, where the customer agreed to your policies, a carrier delivery photo or signature that isn't already in Shopify's shipping tracking PDF, access logs or your listing at the time of purchase.

  6. Prepare PDF, JPEG or PNG files of no more than 2 MB each and 4 MB combined, one file for each type of evidence.

  7. Click Add evidence in the chargeback banner, put the strongest proof first, then submit now or let Shopify submit on the due date.

Does Shopify Have Chargeback Protection?

Key takeaway

Shopify's chargeback protection is Shopify Protect for Shop Pay, usually shortened to Shopify Protect. Whether a given order is covered depends on two separate gates — your store, then the order itself.

Which stores can use Shopify Protect?

Key takeaway

Condition: you are located in the United States and have a United States Shopify Payments account. Where to check: the Orders list filters by protection status — Protection active, Protected, Not protected — and an eligible order's page shows its Shopify Protect status, while an ineligible order's page shows risk analysis instead. If you qualify, a fraudulent or unrecognized chargeback on a protected order needs nothing from you:

The disputed amount and the chargeback fee are immediately reimbursed to you as a credit.
Shopify — Addressing chargebacks with Shopify Protect — Shopify Help Center ·

If you don't qualify, every chargeback follows the normal process above. For stores in the EEA and the UK the nearest documented lever is 3D Secure authentication: when a payment is authenticated with it, liability for fraudulent chargebacks shifts from you to the card issuer, though under Visa's policy, merchants with more than $7,500 USD in fraudulent chargebacks in one month can no longer shift liability.

Which orders does Shopify Protect cover?

Key takeaway

A qualifying store still has to meet the order rules on every order. The tightest one is speed: valid tracking within 7 days of the order and in transit within 10 days. Miss any rule below and the order is handled like any unprotected one.

Shopify Protect order rules
RuleWhat breaks coverage
Paid with Shop PayAny other payment method; Shop Pay Installments orders are excluded
Only physical items that shipAny digital product, or any item bought online for in-store pickup, even next to shipped items
SubscriptionsOnly the initial order is analyzed; later recurring orders get no coverage
FulfilledEvery non-refunded line item must be in Fulfilled status
Tracked and movingValid tracking within 7 days of the order, in transit within 10 days
A supported carrierShopify lists 13, including USPS, UPS, FedEx, DHL Express, Canada Post and Shopify Fulfillment Network
Shipping addressChanging it after checkout voids coverage for that order

Shopify Help Center, Protecting orders with Shopify Protect, read October 8, 2026.

Selling cross-border through Managed Markets changes the route but not the principle: Managed Markets orders processed with Shopify Payments are protected automatically. Which of those orders actually qualify is answered in whether Shopify Protect covers Managed Markets orders.

What Shopify Protect does not cover

Key takeaway

Every reason except fraudulent and unrecognized stays yours. A product-not-received or product-unacceptable chargeback on a protected order goes through the normal response, and so does a fraudulent chargeback on an order that isn't protected. Outside Shopify Protect, Shopify doesn't cover charge reversals from banks.

Orders paid any way other than Shop Pay sit outside it too, which is why a PayPal order never gets Shopify Protect. Third-party apps that sell their own chargeback guarantees exist in the Shopify App Store; their terms are the vendor's, not Shopify's, so read them as you would any contract.

Don't confuse Protect with Shopify's Fraud Control app, which helps you review risk but, in Shopify's words, doesn't guarantee coverage against chargebacks. Stores that still run the older Fraud Protect should know it can't be reactivated once deactivated.

What Happens If Your Chargeback Rate Climbs?

Key takeaway

Winning a chargeback recovers money; it does nothing for your rate. Shopify watches that rate and Visa and Mastercard watch their own dispute ratios; those measures are where repeated chargebacks start to cost more than their fees.

How does Shopify count your chargeback rate?

Key takeaway

The formula is monthly: the number of chargebacks you receive in a month divided by the chargeback-eligible transactions you process in that same month. It is based on all disputes customers open, not only those you lose, so a dispute resolved in your favor still counts. Every chargeback from a card-testing attack counts too, win or lose.

Shopify shows two versions. The standard rate leaves out disputes resolved automatically through a network dispute resolution program such as Visa Rapid Dispute Resolution; the NDRP-inclusive rate includes them, and that displayed rate determines account warning banners, reserve thresholds, account standing and eligibility for features such as the Shop app. You can see your rate in your Shopify Payments settings or in the chargeback rate report.

Which chargeback rate limits apply, and over what window?

Key takeaway

Each limit is measured over its own window, so compare your rate with each one separately rather than with a single number. The two closest to Shopify are the Shop app requirement of a chargeback rate under 1% in the last six months, one of the Shop channel's listing requirements, and the network dispute resolution program line below.

Chargeback rate limits that apply to a Shopify Payments store
LimitValue and windowSet byWhat it means for you
Shop app listingA chargeback rate under 1% in the last six monthsShopifyOne of the requirements for being listed in the Shop app
Network dispute resolution program (entry)An NDRP-inclusive rate of 1.5% or higher over the last 90 daysShopifyAutomatic enrollment is possible: disputes are settled before they become chargebacks, with no evidence window, a 10% payout reserve and a per-dispute fee that depends on your country
Network dispute resolution program (exit)Below 1.00% over the last 90 days, held for 30 consecutive daysShopifyYou leave the program; its reserve can be lifted early
Visa VAMP, Excessive Merchant thresholdVisa's VAMP ratio, not your Shopify rate: 1.5% (150 basis points) with at least 1,500 disputes and fraud reports a month, since April 1, 2026, in Asia-Pacific, Canada, the EU and the US, when your acquirer is not itself Above Standard or ExcessiveVisaA monitoring program can bring monthly fines or additional fees
Mastercard Excessive Chargeback ProgramTwo levels, ECM and HECM; thresholds are listed on Shopify's monitoring-programs pageMastercardYou are removed once chargebacks stay below the threshold for 3 consecutive months

Shopify Help Center (Shop eligibility requirements; Network dispute resolution programs; Fraud and dispute monitoring programs) and Visa's VAMP fact sheet, read October 8, 2026.

The program line is the one with teeth. Merchants with an NDRP-inclusive rate of 1.5% or higher over the last 90 days can be enrolled automatically. Once enrolled, disputes are settled before they become chargebacks, with no evidence window and no way to contest, and a 10% reserve applies to your payouts. Leaving takes a rate below 1.00% over the last 90 days, held for 30 consecutive days — what Shopify requires to exit is set out step by step.

Card networks set their own lines. As of October 2026, Visa's Acquirer Monitoring Program sets its Excessive Merchant threshold, measured on Visa's VAMP ratio, not your Shopify rate, at 150 basis points (1.5%), down from 220, since April 1, 2026 in Asia-Pacific, Canada, the EU and the US, with a minimum of 1,500 disputes and fraud reports a month, when the merchant's acquirer is not itself Above Standard or Excessive. Shopify adds that a long VAMP enrollment can restrict your use of Shopify Payments — and that its own bar sits higher than the networks':

Although payment networks such as Visa and Mastercard publish chargeback thresholds, your store is evaluated against a higher standard to maintain merchant and customer trust across the Shopify ecosystem.
Shopify — Acceptable business practices — Shopify Help Center ·

Reserves, payout holds and deactivation

Key takeaway

Depending on your account activity, a high rate can bring:

  • A reserve on Shopify Payments payouts — a temporary hold on part, sometimes all, of the money from your transactions for a set period. When a reserve lingers past its conditions, why a reserve hasn't been released walks through the cases.
  • Enrollment in a network dispute resolution program, with the reserve and settled disputes described above.
  • Slower payouts: for stores it considers higher risk, Shopify says payouts might take 5 to 20 business days.
  • Suspended payouts or deactivated processing in severe cases; Shopify warns that fulfilling high-risk orders, and the chargebacks that follow, can end in removal from Shopify Payments.

What you won't find is a standalone trigger number. On the Shopify Help Center pages we read on October 8, 2026, the only chargeback-rate figures tied to a reserve sit inside the network dispute resolution program: a 10% reserve when you're enrolled for a high chargeback rate, with automatic enrollment possible at an NDRP-inclusive rate of 1.5% or higher over 90 days, and further reserves or payout holds that can follow if your 90-day rate remains above 1% after the initial reserve expires. None of those pages names a rate for a reserve outside the program or for deactivating processing, so treat the displayed rate and any warning banner as your early signal.

How to Prevent Shopify Chargebacks

Key takeaway

Prevention works on the reason, so pick levers by the reasons that keep appearing in your banners. The table maps each lever Shopify documents on its preventing chargebacks and fraud pages to the chargebacks it targets and where it applies.

Chargeback prevention levers on Shopify
LeverChargebacks it targetsWhere it applies
Review fraud analysis before you fulfill, and cancel high-risk ordersFraudulentFraud recommendations show on the Grow plan or higher, or with Shopify Payments
Capture payment manually on orders you want to checkFraudulentYou see the full fraud analysis before you fulfill and accept the payment
Ship only orders that pass an AVS checkFraudulentPhysical goods shipped to the United States, the United Kingdom or Canada
Online tracking and delivery confirmationProduct not receivedEvery physical shipment; signature confirmation for high-value orders
Billing statement text customers recognizeUnrecognizedSet in the Shopify admin when you use Shopify Payments
3D Secure authenticationFraudulentStores in the EEA and the UK; Shopify Payments uses it only when the issuing bank requires it, and liability for fraudulent chargebacks on authenticated payments shifts to the card issuer, although card issuers have policies that remove this protection if too many chargebacks occur (Visa's applies to merchants with more than $7,500 USD in fraudulent chargebacks in one month)
Card testing protectionFraudulentBuilt into Shopify Payments checkout; any chargeback that still gets through counts toward your rate
No manually keyed cards at the counterFraudulentShopify POS: a manually entered card is card-not-present even when the customer is in your store
Accurate product descriptions and clearly displayed refund and return policiesProduct unacceptable, credit not processedEvery store; Shopify lists both among its practices for a low chargeback rate

Shopify Help Center (Preventing chargebacks; Fraud analysis; Preventing fraud; Responding to chargebacks and inquiries; 3D Secure checkout), read October 8, 2026.

Canceling isn't a shield. Canceling or voiding an order can help reduce the risk of a chargeback, but it doesn't stop the cardholder's bank from filing one. Once a chargeback is open, a refund no longer ends it; at the inquiry stage, a full refund means the cardholder can't start a chargeback, as the chargeback-vs-inquiry table shows.

PayPal, Third-Party Providers and Shopify Balance

Key takeaway

PayPal. In the United States and France, disputes on PayPal Wallet payments made through Shopify Payments are managed in your Shopify admin, although a claim the customer escalates is resolved by PayPal. Disputes on PayPal Express Checkout payments might follow different processes and timelines (Shopify's US PayPal Wallet page says they're managed in the PayPal Business Center), and PayPal Seller Protection isn't managed by Shopify; it does not cover chargebacks for Item Not Received. How the clock and the venue differ from a card dispute is laid out in how a PayPal dispute differs from a card chargeback.

Other third-party providers. Contact the provider to learn how to send evidence to the card company; its disputes follow its own process and don't enter your Shopify Payments chargeback rate. If you're weighing a switch, choosing a payment gateway covers what each route costs.

Shopify Balance. Disputing an ACH debit in a Shopify Balance account is a separate process, not a chargeback, and it is open only for five categories: duplicate charges, incorrect amounts, unauthorized transactions, the wrong receiver name, and the wrong account or routing number. Shopify's ACH dispute steps cover the rest.

The Bottom Line

Key takeaway

A chargeback is two problems on two clocks: the one in the banner, which you meet with evidence, and the rate, which you manage with prevention.

Respond to every chargeback you can defend, and spend the rest of your effort on the reasons that keep coming back. A defended win recovers the disputed amount, but only fewer disputes keep your rate away from the lines that cost you a reserve or the Shop app.
Your Next Step by Stage
A chargeback is open nowFollow Shopify's own steps for the chargeback banner alongside the checklist above.Chargebacks in the Shopify admin
Before the next flagged order shipsDecide what to do with a medium-risk order before it turns into a fraud chargeback.Should you fulfill a medium-risk order?
Rate climbingHave your checkout and fulfillment settings checked against the Shopify Protect order rules and the prevention table on this page.Get a settings review

Want Your Chargeback Defences Set Up for You?

We set billing statement text your customers recognize, move risky orders to manual capture so you read the fraud analysis before taking payment, add an AVS rule for shipments to the US, UK and Canada, and set up fulfillment so tracking lands inside the 7 days Shopify Protect needs on US Shop Pay orders.

Get the prevention setup done

Frequently Asked Questions

Yes, for some orders. Shopify Protect is free and reimburses the disputed amount and the chargeback fee when a protected order gets a fraudulent or unrecognized chargeback. It covers only US stores with a US Shopify Payments account, Shop Pay orders (not Installments), and physical items fulfilled with tracking within 7 days and in transit within 10. Every other chargeback follows the normal process.
In the United States, the chargeback fee on Shopify Payments is $15 USD, withdrawn together with the disputed amount as soon as the chargeback is filed. For other countries, check Shopify's fee table, which lists 39 countries and regions. A card from another country also exposes the disputed amount to exchange rates. Accepting a chargeback means the fee is not refunded.
Shopify's process, admin and resolution pages say yes: after a win, the disputed amount plus the fee comes back in your next payout after the decision. Its chargeback overview is softer: Shopify might refund the fee depending on your country or region. Check the payout that follows a won decision. If you accept a chargeback instead, the resolution page says the fee isn't refunded.
Typically 7 to 21 days after the chargeback is filed. The due date in the chargeback banner is in your store's timezone, and when no time is shown the deadline is 11:59 PM on that date. Shopify submits your response on the due date even if you added nothing, and after the deadline you can't add more evidence.
For a chargeback, up to 75 days after you submit your evidence. An inquiry usually takes 65 to 75 days, but it might take longer. The cardholder's bank and card company make the decision, not Shopify. Until then the disputed amount stays out of your payouts; if you win, it comes back in your next payout after the decision.
Not as a way out. The resolution, admin and reasons pages say you can't refund once a chargeback starts; Shopify's responding guide says you can but might still lose. If you owe the customer, accept the chargeback (the fee isn't refunded), or have them drop it first and then refund. At the inquiry stage, a full refund means the cardholder can't start a chargeback.
No. Shopify bases your chargeback rate on the number of disputes customers open, not on outcomes, so a dispute resolved in your favor still counts. The rate divides the chargebacks you receive in a month by the chargeback-eligible transactions you process that month. Payments taken through a third-party provider stay out of it, because those disputes follow the provider's own process.
An NDRP-inclusive rate of 1.5% or higher over 90 days can bring automatic enrollment in a dispute resolution program, with a 10% payout reserve; exiting takes below 1.00% over 90 days, held for 30 consecutive days. The Shop app wants under 1% over six months. Outside the program, the pages we read on October 8, 2026 name no rate that triggers a reserve or deactivation.
If the deadline hasn't passed, contact Shopify Support immediately and ask for the chargeback to be un-accepted so you can add evidence. After the deadline nothing more can be submitted. Accepting means the disputed amount goes back to the customer and the chargeback fee is not refunded, so check the reason and the evidence table before clicking Accept chargeback.
No. Once the bank or card company rules on a chargeback, Shopify says there is no appeal process and the decision is final. A win isn't always the end either: the customer's bank can dispute the same transaction again, and you then respond to that new dispute.
Only PDF, JPEG or PNG files, each no larger than 2 MB and together no larger than 4 MB, with every PDF under 50 pages. Submit one file per type of evidence. Shopify asks you not to include audio, video, links to external pages or requests to call or email, so use screenshots of tracking pages and customer messages, and put your strongest proof first.
It depends on how PayPal is connected. In the United States and France, PayPal Wallet disputes through Shopify Payments are managed in your Shopify admin, although a claim the customer escalates is resolved by PayPal. Express Checkout disputes might follow different processes and timelines; Shopify's US PayPal Wallet page says they're managed in the PayPal Business Center. Shopify Protect doesn't cover PayPal orders.
About This Article
Shopify Developer & Editorial Director
9+ years with Shopify since 2017

Front-end developer specializing in Shopify since 2017. Experienced in building custom Liquid themes, optimizing storefront performance, and integrating third-party apps. Directs the editorial process behind Ecom Store Pro: sets its topics and the rules every AI-written page must pass before publication.

Some links in this article are affiliate links. If you sign up for a Shopify store through these links, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Read our full advertising policy.

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