OpenGate
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Dropshippers, cross-border ecommerce, international sellers

A payment gateway for dropshipping and cross-border sellers, built for the delivery gap.

OpenGate is a payment gateway for dropshipping and cross-border ecommerce sellers who need a merchant account that holds up through long shipping times. Dropshipping sells today and ships from a supplier weeks away, cross-border selling adds currency, fraud and card-fee layers, and mainstream processors decline the combination rather than model it. We underwrite the supplier chain, the shipping times and the tracking data, then structure the account around when orders actually arrive.

Apply to start processingHow it works

At a glance

Dropshipping & Cross-Border

Sector
E-commerce & retail
Payment methods
Cards (Visa/Mastercard) · Local payment methods · Wallets
Documents in the file
6
First answer
Within 1 business day

Why processors refuse

Why mainstream PSPs refuse dropshipping and cross-border sellers

The refusals trace to one fact: the merchant does not hold the inventory. Everything the risk desk dislikes follows from that, from long delivery windows to supplier failures the merchant cannot control. Each refusal below names the specific fear, and how OpenGate answers it.

  1. Long fulfillment windows

    Orders shipped from overseas suppliers take weeks, and the cardholder can dispute the entire time. When delivery runs long, disputes spike before the package even clears customs, and the acquirer carries the exposure throughout.

    How OpenGate handles it

    We underwrite the shipping times per market and size the reserve against the real delivery window. The underwriter checks the stated delivery promises on the site against the supplier's actual times, because the gap between the two is where disputes are born.

  2. Supplier risk the merchant cannot see

    A supplier can stop shipping, change product quality or close overnight, and the merchant discovers it through chargebacks. The acquirer knows the merchant holds no buffer stock and prices that dependency into the risk.

    How OpenGate handles it

    The file includes the supplier list, the relationship evidence and the backup plan. Acquirers accept supplier dependency when the merchant can show sourcing discipline and a refund-first policy for orders that will not arrive on time.

  3. Cross-border fees and fraud

    International cards carry cross-border assessments and higher fraud rates. A merchant selling worldwide from one storefront mixes low-risk and high-risk markets in one account, which inflates the dispute profile and the cost.

    How OpenGate handles it

    We split the markets in the file and route the volume to acquirers that price each region correctly. 3DS2 and fraud scoring run per market, so a risky region is challenged instead of dragging down the whole account.

  4. Thin margins versus dispute costs

    Dropshipping margins are thin, and a single chargeback can erase the profit of dozens of orders. Acquirers see a vertical where one bad month of disputes can wipe out months of margin, and they decline rather than carry it.

    How OpenGate handles it

    The offer is built around the real economics: rates, reserve and limits sized so the account can absorb a dispute spike. The representment toolkit files tracking and delivery evidence, which recovers the cases that are actually winnable.

  5. Tracking gaps and friendly fraud

    Without carrier tracking for every order, the merchant cannot prove delivery, and friendly fraud becomes a business cost. Acquirers treat missing tracking as missing evidence, and missing evidence loses disputes by default.

    How OpenGate handles it

    We require the tracking integration before activation and read the delivery-confirmation rate into the underwriting. Merchants who track every order and refund the untracked ones keep their ratios low and their accounts alive.

The file

How we underwrite a dropshipping merchant account

The file has to answer three questions: where do the products come from, how long do they take to arrive and what does the customer see in between. The documents below answer each, and the underwriter checks them before submission.

Supplier list and agreements

The suppliers you source from, the products they fulfill and the evidence of the relationship. The acquirer reviews supplier concentration, because one supplier failure should not empty the account.

Tracking integration

Proof that orders ship with carrier tracking and that the tracking reference flows to the customer and the gateway. Required before activation.

Delivery times and refund policy

The stated delivery window per market on the site, and the refund policy for late or lost orders. The site promises and the supplier reality must match.

Processing history

Three to six months of statements with refund and chargeback figures, split by market where possible. Where no history exists, the offer carries a lower cap and a higher reserve until clean months accumulate.

Corporate identity and ownership

Registration documents, shareholder structure and identity documents for directors and UBOs, the same standard set as every other vertical.

Product pages and checkout

The live site with product pages, shipping promises and the full checkout flow. The funnel is reviewed against the supplier reality before any bank sees the file.

Payment methods

Payment methods for dropshipping and cross-border sellers

Cross-border buyers pay in their own currency and expect the rails they know. The mix below covers the markets where dropshippers actually sell.

See every capability

  • Cards (Visa/Mastercard)

    Multi-currency processing with 3DS2 and per-market fraud rules, so the customer pays locally and fraud-coded disputes shift to the issuer.

  • Local payment methods

    Pix in Brazil, iDEAL and SEPA in Europe, and the bank rails buyers in those markets expect at checkout.

  • Wallets

    Regional wallets where they dominate checkout share, with settlement in the merchant's base currency.

  • Pay-by-link

    Invoice links for manual orders and B2B resellers, with expiry and limits.

The process

The four stages on /how-it-works apply unchanged: file, analysis, offer, go-live. The supplier list and the delivery times are the parts of the file that set the reserve, so include both in the application at /apply. A complete file can move from review to go-live in as little as two weeks.

See the 4-step process

FAQ

Dropshipping payment processing FAQ

Can I use Stripe or PayPal for dropshipping?

Yes, at first. Neither bans dropshipping, though PayPal's policy restricts selling certain items before the seller controls them. The trouble starts when long shipping times push disputes up: accounts get closed and balances held. OpenGate underwrites the supplier chain and delivery times with acquirers that price the model instead of refusing it.

Why does dropshipping need a reserve?

Because the dispute window covers the whole delivery time, and a supplier failure can trigger disputes across dozens of orders at once. The reserve holds funds against that exposure and releases on the schedule in your written offer.

What documents do I need for a dropshipping merchant account?

Supplier list and agreements, tracking integration proof, delivery times and refund policy, three to six months of processing history, corporate identity documents and your live website. Send what you have; the underwriter lists the gaps within 1 business day.

How long does onboarding take for a dropshipping store?

As little as two weeks with a complete file. Cross-border files usually slow down on the market list and the delivery promises, so put those in the application.

Can I sell to any country?

The offer defines the allowed markets explicitly. Each market adds its own fraud profile and card costs, and the underwriter prices them into the file rather than assuming one global risk.

What happens when my supplier stops shipping?

Refund the affected orders before they become disputes, and document the supplier failure for the acquirer. A refund-first policy on undeliverable orders is what keeps the account alive through a supplier problem.

How is the reserve percentage set?

From the delivery window, the supplier concentration and your dispute history. The percentage and the release schedule are written into the offer before you sign, and they typically improve as clean months accumulate.

Do I need tracking on every order?

Yes. Carrier tracking is the evidence that wins non-delivery disputes, and the acquirer expects the tracking reference on every shipment before activation. Orders that cannot be tracked should be refunded early.

Why was my dropshipping account closed?

The usual causes are dispute spikes from long shipping times, a processor's policy change on the vertical, or missing tracking evidence. Send the closure notice and your history, and the underwriter will tell you whether the file can be placed again.

Related guides

Read all guides
How-to10 min read

Stripe or PayPal Closed Your Account: What to Do Next

Why Stripe and PayPal close high-risk accounts, what happens to your funds, and the recovery sequence that gets you processing again.

Closures & MATCHHow-to11 min read

How to Reduce Your Chargeback Ratio: The Full Prevention Playbook

The arithmetic of chargeback ratios, why Visa and Mastercard watch them, and the operational playbook that keeps your account below the line.

ChargebacksExplainer9 min read

Rolling Reserves Explained: The Math, the Release Schedule, the Negotiation

How rolling reserves work: the percentage, the cap, the release math, and a worked example so you can read your own offer like an underwriter.

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Dropshipping & Cross-Border

Open your cross-border gate.

Send the file with your supplier list and delivery times. An underwriter reads it within 1 business day and replies with an offer, a document list, or an honest no.

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