Payment card lifecycle

A payment card has a natural lifecycle.

first successful transaction
Inactive
Active
Expired
Deactivated

Inactive

A card starts in an inactive state.

The card will remain in an inactive state so long as there have been zero transactions processed against the card (including authorizations).

Active

As soon as the first successful transaction has been processed against the card, it will move to an active state.

Expired

Once the expiration date is reached, a card may be marked as expired by the system.

Deactivated

Also, the card can be deactivated. Once deactivated, no further charges can be made against the card. The card cannot be re-activated.

Default card

Either an inactive card or an active card can be set as the default payment card for a subscription. If set, all subscription renewal charges for the subscriber will be made against the default card.