Overview

What is a Category?

A Category is often referred to as an industry, vertical, or business segment. It is used to define the services or goods rendered by a business.

In Plastiq Connect, a categoryId is a Recipient Category identifier utilized to classify the goods or services provided by a Recipient.

Using Plastiq Connect APIs, Recipient Categories are utilized to help integrating platforms synchronously determine and advise their customers if a Payment to a Recipient in a selected Category is allowed for processing against the selected Payment Method option.

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The Payments Ecosystem and Recipient Category Classification

Card issuers and card networks have a broad range of policies outlining supported and unsupported Payments across a vast network of Recipient industries.

A Recipient's classification of the type of rendered goods or services is used to track and restrict transactions.

Merchant Category Codes

Categories are Plastiq Connect's proxy and abridged name for merchant category codes, a government-mandated four-digit number used by card companies and card networks to classify businesses into market segments.

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The Special Role of Merchant Category Codes

Merchant category codes have several purposes.

They often determine the rewards that customers receive for using their card products, and determine whether a business transaction needs to be reported to the IRS.

Moreover, they determine the percentage of each transaction a business needs to pay for accepting a card Payment.

Managing Categories

Plastiq Connect has a vast range of Categories it can support, and although that translates into more options for your customer, it also means more decisions.

We recommend you evaluate the list of Categories supported in Plastiq Connect and present those Categories that provide the most value for your customers.

Relevant Recipient Categories

For example, if you're operating in the Healthcare space and most of your customers are healthcare patients, displaying a list dropdown with an option to select a Recipient Category as 'Lumber & Building Materials' may not be the most sensical option for your customer.

Nested Recipient Category Options

Alternatively, if your platform serves a wide-range set of customers across various industries and you would like to give your customers as many options as possible, you may be able to the Category list and mitigate decision fatigue by offering parent and child Category dropdown lists.

Plastiq Connect's implementation team can help and co-design this experience with you to cater to your specific need.

You know your customer best.

Category List

Below, you can find the full universe of Recipient Categories enabled via Plastiq Connect:

Accounting & Tax Services
Advertising
Architecture & Engineering
Books & Newspapers
Business & Secretarial Schools
Carpentry
Charities
Chemicals
Childcare Services & Daycare
Cleaning Products
Cleaning & Janitorial
Clubs (Athletic Golf Yacht)
Colleges Universities Professional Schools
Commercial Footwear
Commercial Rent
Computer Programming & Data Processing
Concrete Work
Consumer & Packaged Goods
Copy & Reproduction
Correspondence Schools
Court Costs
Credit Card Payments
Dance Hall Studios Schools
Electrical Contractor
Electrical Parts & Equipment
Elementary & Secondary Schools
Employment Agency
Exterminating
Florists' Supplies
Food & Beverage
Franchise Fees & Purchase of a Business
General Contractors & Builders
Glass Paint Wallpaper
Government Fines
Government Service
Graphics Art Photography
Hardware
Heating Plumbing Air Conditioning Irrigation
HOA & Condo Fees
Industrial
Informational Retrieval
Insurance
Investments & Financial Services
Labor & Payroll
Landscaping & Gardening
Legal Services
Lumber & Building Materials - Wholesale
Medical
Masonry Stonework Tile Setting Plastering Insulation
Membership Organizations
Metal Products & Service
Mortgage & HELOC
Office Equipment
Office Furniture
Other Business Services
Other Contracting Services incl Painting
Other Inventory
Other Personal Services
Other Professional Services
Other Schools & Educational Services
Paint - Wholesale
Personal Loans
Petroleum Products - Wholesale
Residential Rent
Roofing Siding Sheet Metal
Security & Investigative Services
Shipping
Stenography & Secretarial Support
Student Loans
Taxes
Telecom Equipment Phones
Telecom Internet Cable
Testing Laboratories
Trade & Vocational Schools
Uniforms & Commercial Clothing
Utilities
Vehicle Lease Payments
Vehicle Loan Payments
Vehicle Purchase
Welding

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Unsupported Payments

We will let you know when a Payment cannot be supported with a select Payment Method via Plastiq Connect by rendering the Payment Intent status as 'NOT_CAPTURABLE'.

statusCodes associated with unsupported Payments to select Recipient Categories will likely include: 'CARD_BRAND_BLOCK' and 'CARD_ISSUER_BLOCK'.