Your Wise Card Transactions: Understanding Invalid Disputes

From time to time, you might make a purchase with your Wise card and run into an issue — maybe something you bought didn’t arrive, wasn’t as described, or you were charged more than expected. You reach out to the merchant hoping to get a refund, but they either say no or don’t respond.

When that happens, you might think about disputing the payment through Wise and requesting a chargeback, and that’s totally fair. If you're unsure about what a chargeback is and how it works, we’ve written a guide on chargebacks that explains it all.

Before you decide to dispute the payment, it’s important to check whether your reason for the dispute is actually valid.

Some types of issues can’t be disputed under card network rules, and if you raise a dispute for one of those, it could be declined. To help you avoid that, we’ve put together an FAQ page that explains what counts as an invalid card dispute, and in this blog, we’ll walk you through some real examples to make things clearer.

Before we explore common scenarios where a chargeback isn't the right path, it's good to remember when it's the appropriate course of action. Generally, chargebacks are designed for issues such as:

You never received the goods or services you paid for.

The goods or services were significantly not as they were described.

You were charged for something you explicitly cancelled.

Incorrectly charged amounts or duplicate charges.

Understanding these valid reasons helps clarify why the situations we're about to discuss are typically handled differently by card networks like Visa and Mastercard.

You weren’t happy with the food quality and tried to dispute the charge

You ordered a meal, maybe through a delivery app, or directly from a restaurant. But when it arrived, the food was cold, tasted bad, or just didn’t meet your expectations. You reached out to the restaurant or app for a refund, but they refused, so you tried to file a chargeback through Wise.

Unfortunately, this isn’t a valid reason for a chargeback. Visa and Mastercard don’t allow disputes based solely on personal dissatisfaction with the quality, temperature, or taste of food. From the card network’s perspective, the service was still rendered since the food was prepared and delivered, so the transaction is considered valid.

If you feel the service was unacceptable, your best option is to leave a review, contact the restaurant or delivery platform directly again, or report the issue to your local food safety authority if it was a serious health concern. But a chargeback won’t be the right route here.

To avoid this kind of issue, when ordering, especially from new places, check recent reviews for insights into food quality and service.

You subscribed to a service but forgot to cancel the free trial

You signed up for a fitness app or any other service that offered a free trial. You forgot to cancel before the trial ended, and it auto-renewed, charging your card. You didn’t use the service after that and tried to dispute the charge.

This isn’t a valid chargeback reason, because if the terms of the subscription and renewal were clearly presented, the transaction is considered legitimate.

When signing up for free trials, you can set a calendar reminder a few days before it ends so you have time to evaluate and cancel if you don't wish to continue with a paid subscription.

You were charged an overweight/oversized baggage fee by the airline

Imagine you’re flying with Ryanair. You get to the airport, and at the gate, they weigh your carry-on and tell you it’s too heavy. You end up paying a fee for overweight baggage, so you could board your flight. Later, you feel the fee was unfair, so you try to get the money back through a chargeback.

Unfortunately, this wouldn’t be a valid reason for a chargeback. Because under Visa and Mastercard’s rules, charges like baggage fees, fines, or penalties are generally not disputable. These are penalties based on the airline’s terms, and the card schemes understand that if a charge was authorised to the card, it is because the cardholder accepted the impositions made by the merchant. Additionally, when it comes to overweight/oversized baggage, it’s nearly impossible to prove that your bag wasn’t overweight or oversized at the time. Since the airline has their own weighing process and records, card networks almost always side with them in these cases.

Your best option is to raise the issue directly with the airline. If that doesn’t work and you still believe the fee was unfair or not clearly communicated, you can also consider reaching out to a local consumer protection authority or an aviation regulator in the country where the flight took place — they may be able to advise or step in, depending on the situation.

It’s important to always double-check airline baggage weight and dimension limits before heading to the airport.

You were fined on public transport and tried to dispute the payment

You’re on a tram or metro, and a ticket inspector comes by. For some reason, maybe you forgot to validate your ticket, bought the wrong one, didn’t have one at all, or couldn’t buy it due to a machine issue or time-constraint, and you’re issued a fine on the spot. You decide to pay it right away with your card, but later, you feel it was unfair, so you try to dispute the payment through Wise.

Unfortunately, this is not a valid reason for a chargeback. Visa and Mastercard don’t allow chargebacks for government-issued fines, penalties, or administrative fees, and that includes those issued by public transport authorities or companies. Once the fine is paid, it’s considered settled, and card networks won’t get involved in reviewing whether it was fair or not.

We get that these fines can feel unreasonable, especially if you think there was a misunderstanding or mistake. But in this case, the best thing to do is to reach out directly to the transport authority or company that issued the fine. Many cities have appeals processes or ombudsmen you can contact if you want to contest the penalty.

Always make sure to familiarize yourself with local public transport ticketing rules when travelling.

You received the wrong item but didn’t want to return it

Let’s say you ordered a blue backpack online, but when it arrives, it’s green. You reach out to the merchant, and they agree it was a mistake, but they ask you to send the wrong item back before they can send the correct one or give you a refund. They also let you know that the return shipping is your responsibility.

You’re not happy about having to pay for the return, so you decide not to send it back, and instead, you raise a dispute through Wise, hoping to get your money back.

Unfortunately, this kind of dispute would be declined. That’s because card network rules require you to make a reasonable attempt to return the item if it wasn’t as described or is damaged. If you refuse to return it, even if the return cost is on you, the merchant technically has the right to deny a refund, and a chargeback wouldn’t be valid.

Even if you do return the item at your own cost, Visa doesn’t allow us to dispute that return shipping fee as a separate transaction, since it’s not something covered under their chargeback rules.

If you believe the merchant is breaking consumer laws by making you pay to return something that was their mistake, we recommend contacting your local consumer protection agency instead. They’ll be better positioned to look into that kind of issue.

You missed your first flight and tried to dispute the charge for your connecting flight with a different airline

You booked two flights to get to your destination: the first one with Lufthansa and the second with EasyJet. Let’s say Lufthansa had a delay, and you ended up missing your second flight with EasyJet. EasyJet says they can’t refund you because you didn’t show up, so you try to dispute that second ticket through Wise.

Unfortunately, this isn’t a valid chargeback case. Unless the flights were part of a single booking or itinerary (like a codeshare or one ticket through a travel agency), each airline is only responsible for their own segment. Since EasyJet operated the flight as scheduled and your seat was available, they’re not considered at fault, and Visa or Mastercard will usually side with the airline.

If the delay was caused by Lufthansa, you can try contacting them directly or check if travel insurance might cover the missed connection. But a chargeback for the second flight isn’t something we can raise.

You were charged a high fee by an ATM

You withdrew cash from an ATM, but later noticed that you had agreed to a high fee. You didn’t realize the ATM would add such a big fee, so you try to dispute the transaction.

Unfortunately, this isn’t something we can raise a chargeback for if you agreed to it on the receipt. Most ATMs clearly show the fees before completing the withdrawal, and accepting them means the transaction is considered valid. Card networks don’t allow disputes just because the fee was higher than you expected, unless you have a receipt showing that no fee was supposed to be charged, or that the fee shown was lower than what you were actually charged, we may be able to raise a dispute on your behalf.

You paid for a visa application or government service and it got rejected

You paid for a visa, passport renewal, or similar service online. After your application was reviewed, you received a negative response, and your visa was denied. You expected a refund, but the website clearly stated fees are non-refundable. You tried to dispute the charge.

These kinds of payments aren’t eligible for chargebacks if the service (i.e. the application processing) was performed. The outcome doesn’t affect the validity of the charge.

Limited Dispute Scenarios

1 - Another tricky area for card disputes involves delayed charges, such as when a hotel or rental service bills you for damages days or weeks later. There are very specific card network rules governing how these merchants must inform you and get your consent, and these rules can differ, for example, between European and non-European businesses. If they don't follow these rules, you may have strong grounds for a dispute.

2 - When you use your Wise card to send money through another service like Remitly or Revolut, and you accidentally send it to the wrong account number or you simply want to cancel that payment and get the money back from the recipient, getting your money back through the dispute or chargeback process can be very difficult.

This is because these money transfers are usually considered final once the service receives your payment. Unlike buying something with your card, where you might be able to dispute a charge for a faulty item, there are very few options to get your money back if you simply entered the wrong details for the person you're sending money to.

We can only help you with a dispute if:

• The money transfer service itself didn't receive your payment.
• The person you sent money to never actually received it.

If you sent money to the wrong account number by mistake, it's vital to immediately contact the money transfer service you used (like Remitly or Revolut). Ask them if they can help you try to get the money back from the recipient's bank

3 - Investment services also operate under a different framework. You might be in a situation where you paid for a financial or investment service and didn’t earn what was promised. Chargeback rights are typically very limited in these cases as well. Card networks generally view investment outcomes as market-driven risks that are inherent to the nature of such services, rather than failures in the transaction itself.

Ultimately, while chargebacks offer important protection, understanding their scope and limitations is crucial. By knowing when a dispute is likely to be invalid, you can better direct your efforts towards the most effective solution and avoid potential disappointment.

Remember to always first attempt to resolve issues directly with the merchant and to familiarize yourself with their terms and conditions.