Subscriptions, continuity, trials, memberships
A payment gateway for subscription and continuity billing, built for the rebill.
OpenGate is a payment gateway for subscription, membership and continuity merchants that need a merchant account built for recurring billing. Subscriptions bill on a schedule the customer forgets, so every rebill is a potential dispute, and mainstream processors close continuity models the moment the ratio climbs. We underwrite the checkout terms, the cancellation path and the dunning logic, then structure the account around the rebill cycle.
At a glance
Subscription & Continuity
- Sector
- E-commerce & retail
- Payment methods
- Cards (Visa/Mastercard) · SEPA Direct Debit · Wallets
- Documents in the file
- 6
- First answer
- Within 1 business day
Why processors refuse
Why mainstream PSPs refuse subscription and continuity merchants
The refusals follow the rebill. A merchant who charges a customer who forgot the terms creates a dispute the merchant loses, and mainstream processors refuse the model rather than manage the terms. Each refusal below names the specific fear, and how OpenGate answers it.
Negative-option billing rules
Trials that convert to paid subscriptions without clear consent violate consumer rules in the US and Europe, and regulators keep tightening the standard. The card schemes add their own trial rules on disclosure, reminders and cancellation. Acquirers treat a non-compliant trial flow as a fine they will eventually pay.
How OpenGate handles it
We review the checkout flow against the negative-option rules before submission: the price, the rebill schedule and the cancellation path stated in plain language at the point of consent. The funnel has to pass before any bank sees the file.
Trial-to-paid dispute spikes
The first rebill after a trial is the most disputed charge in the vertical. Customers forget the conversion date, dispute the charge, and the merchant's ratio spikes in a single billing cycle.
How OpenGate handles it
Pre-billing reminders and chargeback alerts catch the disputes before they formalize. The underwriter reads the trial conversion rate and the first-rebill dispute rate as the vertical's real health metric, and the offer reflects it.
Silent cancellations and friendly fraud
When cancellation is buried, customers stop trying and dispute instead. The merchant keeps a month of revenue and loses the account, because acquirers read a high dispute ratio as a broken cancellation flow, not bad customers.
How OpenGate handles it
We check the cancellation path as part of the file: visible, functional, and as easy as the signup path. A flow fixed before submission typically shows up in the dispute ratio within a billing cycle or two.
Involuntary churn from failed rebills
Expired cards and declined rebills silently kill subscription revenue. Merchants chase the lost billing with aggressive retries, which produces its own disputes when cards get charged after customers thought they left.
How OpenGate handles it
Dunning runs in controlled waves inside the scheme limits on retries, and card updater refreshes the cards that expired or were reissued. The recovery happens without the aggressive retry behavior that feeds disputes.
MCC 5968 and continuity classification
Continuity billing has its own merchant category code, MCC 5968, and it draws extra scheme rules on negative-option offers and closer dispute monitoring. Mainstream processors treat the code as high-risk and decline most files outright.
How OpenGate handles it
We route continuity files to acquirers that underwrite the category, not around it. The pricing on /pricing reflects the real mechanics of the code, and the offer states every fee in writing before you sign.
The file
How we underwrite a subscription merchant account
The file has to answer three questions: what does the customer see at signup, what happens on the rebill, and how does a customer leave. The documents below answer each, and the underwriter checks them before submission.
Checkout terms and consent flow
The signup page with the price, the rebill schedule and the cancellation terms in plain language, plus the consent record the customer actually accepted. Required at onboarding and submitted to the dispute file as evidence.
Cancellation path
The live cancellation flow, including how a customer finds it without contacting support. Evaluated before activation, because how easily a customer can leave is one of the strongest dispute predictors in the vertical.
Dunning and retry policy
The retry schedule for failed rebills, the reminder sequence before each charge and the card updater setup. The acquirer reviews the policy against the scheme rules on recurring billing.
Processing history
Three to six months of statements with refund and chargeback figures separated, plus the trial conversion and churn rates where you track them. Where no history exists, the offer carries a lower cap and a higher reserve.
Corporate identity and ownership
Registration documents, shareholder structure and identity documents for directors and UBOs, the same standard set as every other vertical.
Product and billing calendar
The subscription products, price points and billing frequencies, mapped to the terms shown at checkout. The underwriter checks that every rebill traces to a consent record.
Payment methods
Payment methods for subscription and continuity merchants
Recurring revenue needs rails that handle the rebill correctly. The mix below covers the markets where subscription merchants actually bill.
Cards (Visa/Mastercard)
Card-on-file with scheme-compliant mandate handling, card updater for expired cards and 3DS2 on the first charge.
SEPA Direct Debit
Bank-rail rebills for European customers, with mandate management and pre-notification built in.
Wallets
Wallet billing agreements in markets where wallets carry the recurring volume and the wallet's own rules accept the product.
Payment plans
Installment schedules for higher-ticket subscriptions, run on card-on-file billing and tied to one billing agreement.
The process
The four stages on /how-it-works apply unchanged: file, analysis, offer, go-live. The checkout terms and the cancellation path are the parts of the file that set the reserve, so describe both in the application at /apply. A complete file can move from review to go-live in as little as two weeks.
FAQ
Subscription and continuity payment processing FAQ
Can I use Stripe or PayPal for my subscription business?
What makes a trial flow compliant?
What documents do I need for a subscription merchant account?
How long does onboarding take?
How is the reserve percentage set?
What is card updater and do I need it?
Why was my subscription merchant account closed?
How do I reduce chargebacks on the first rebill?
Can I bill in multiple currencies?
Related guides
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.
ChargebacksExplainer10 min read3DS2 and SCA for High-Risk Merchants
What 3DS2 and Strong Customer Authentication actually do, how the liability shift works, which exemptions apply, and how high-risk merchants should route authentication.
Compliance & securityExplainer9 min readRolling 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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Subscription & Continuity
Open your subscription gate.
Send the file with your checkout terms and cancellation flow. An underwriter reads it within 1 business day and replies with an offer, a document list, or an honest no.
Free to apply. A human answer within 1 business day.