If you accept business or government credit cards, there’s an important update from Visa you should know about. Starting this year, Visa is rolling out the Commercial Enhanced Data Program (CEDP), a change that impacts how businesses qualify for lower processing costs on commercial card transactions.

So, what exactly is CEDP, and how can you prepare? Let’s break it down.

What is CEDP?

CEDP is Visa’s new framework for processing commercial card transactions. Think of it as an upgrade to the old Level 2, Level 3, and Large Ticket/Transaction programs, all bundled together into one unified product called Product 3.

What qualifies as a commercial card?

Commercial cards are corporate, purchasing, government, and business credit cards.

What’s Changing?

Business cards can now qualify for bigger savings: Previously, business cards could only access Level 2 rates. With CEDP, they can now qualify for Level 3. Meaning lower fees for you when the right information is passed.

To earn the best rates, your system must send complete, accurate details on each transaction (specifics listed below).

Why It Matters for You

This isn’t just another Visa update, it’s a real opportunity to save money and stay competitive.

Lower costs, bigger margins: By qualifying for Level 3 rates, especially on business cards, you could see noticeable savings on interchange fees up to 15bps (0.15%).

Stay ahead of the curve: Start setting up your products and adding detailed information with your transactions today, so you’ll be ready and fully verified well before the deadline.

Reward for accuracy: Clean, detailed data doesn’t just check a compliance box, it directly translates into lower processing costs for your business.

Think of it this way: the more detailed your data, the more you can save.

What You Need to Do

To qualify for Visa’s incentive rates under CEDP, make sure your transactions include as much specific, accurate information as possible. The key fields Visa looks at include:

• Invoice or order number

• Customer reference number / PO number

• Tax amount

• Freight or shipping amount

• Duty amount (if applicable)

• Line-item details for each product sold:

• Product description

• Quantity

• Unit of measure

• Unit cost
  
  

The more complete and accurate these fields are, the greater your chance of qualifying for Product 3 and unlocking lower interchange rates!