Payments · Guide13 min readUpdated November 2, 2026

Stripe Prohibited and Restricted Businesses: The List Explained

Stripe's prohibited and restricted businesses list by category: what needs approval, what applies to everyone, and what happens if you sell anyway.

Nick Bonnassies, CMO at Tagada · checked against 9 sources

Article summary

TL;DR

Stripe sorts businesses into prohibited ones, which it doesn't support, and restricted ones, which "require additional due diligence" before approval. A third part, "Prohibited uses", applies to every business, whatever it sells. The list was last updated September 22, 2026, and Stripe says it is "not an exhaustive list". A product not named can still be refused.

Stripe's list was last updated on September 22, 2026: tobacco rules clarified in the US, credit monitoring now supportable in the US.
Prohibited categories are "representative", and Stripe says "this is not an exhaustive list".
Restricted businesses need Stripe's approval first, and that approval "may be modified or revoked by Stripe at any time".
9 "Prohibited uses" apply to every industry, including "Evasion of card network chargeback monitoring programs".
When Stripe acts for unacceptable risk, it typically pauses payouts for 120 days from its first email.

Want to go further? Ask

On this page

Stripe publishes the list on its legal site. This guide reads it for you: what each part means, which lines catch ecommerce brands, and what happens after a mismatch. For the general question of when you need an underwritten account instead, see our guide to the high-risk merchant account.

How Stripe's list is organized

The page has seven parts. Two decide whether your business can use Stripe at all, and one sets rules for how every business uses it.

Part	What it covers	Applies to
High-risk jurisdictions and persons	Sanctioned countries, regions and persons	Everyone
ProhibitedBusinesses	"Industries that can't use Stripe, and products Stripe doesn't support"	Everyone
RestrictedBusinesses	"Industries and products that require additional due diligence"	Everyone
Jurisdiction-specific prohibited businesses	Extra bans in 11 countries	Businesses in those countries
ProhibitedUses of Stripe products	Activities never allowed, "regardless of the industry"	Everyone
Issuing and Capital	Rules for Stripe's card issuing and financing products	Users of those products

Source: Stripe, list updated September 22, 20261.

Fig. 1Three answers Stripe can give

Prohibited
Stripe doesn't support it. Illegal products and services are never eligible.
Restricted
Possible after extra due diligence, such as licenses or business model details. Approval can be revoked.
Not listed
Open by default, then reviewed on live payments like every account.

Not listed doesn't mean never reviewed.

Source: Stripe, Prohibited and restricted businesses, updated September 22, 2026.

Prohibited vs restricted: what the difference means

Prohibited means Stripe won't support the business. Restricted means Stripe might, after it checks you first. Here is Stripe's own wording for restricted businesses:

Businesses in these categories require additional due diligence by Stripe in order to confirm our ability to support them. When you create your Stripe account, you will be asked to provide additional information (such as proof of relevant licenses or more details about your business model) to confirm your eligibility to use Stripe.

Stripe, Prohibited and restricted businesses, updated September 22, 2026

The same paragraph adds that Stripe "might not be able to grant approval", and that an approval "is specific to each service offer"1.

Stripe's FAQ goes one step further. It says Stripe might support businesses on the list "with explicit prior approval", and that "Certain categories, including illegal products or services, are never eligible"2. So a prohibited line is not always a final no, but it's never a default yes.

Status	What you do	What can still happen
Prohibited	Don't open an account for it	Rare exceptions only with explicit prior approval2
Restricted	Declare it at sign-up and send what Stripe asks	Refusal, or approval later "modified or revoked"1
Not listed	Sign up normally	Review on live payments, a reserve or a closure3 4

Stripe's prohibited businesses, category by category

These are Stripe's headings, with lines quoted from the list1. The categories are examples, not a complete catalog.

Stripe category	Lines from the list	What surprises merchants
Any illegal products and services	"Illegal drugs, substances designed to mimic illegal drugs, including kava"	Kava is named
Adult content and services	Adult services, adult video stores, pornography, and "Any artificial-intelligence generated content that meets the above criteria"	AI-generated content counts too
Debt relief companies	"Debt settlement, debt negotiation, and debt consolidation"
Financial products and services	ATMs, check cashing, debt collection, "Funded prop trading", peer-to-peer money transmission	Funded prop trading
Gambling	Games of chance and of skill "with a monetary or material prize", lotteries, "Bidding fee auctions"	Sweepstakes and paid tournaments
Government services	Services "without authorization or value-add" or "with misleading claims"	Resold government forms
Identity services	"Identity theft protection services including monitoring and recovery"
Illegal weapons, explosives, and dangerous materials	Illegal weapons, "Incorrectly labeled research chemicals", "Unmailable goods, per the United States Postal Service"	Research chemicals sold without a correct label
Intellectual property	"Counterfeit goods", "Unauthorized sale of brand-name or designer products or services"	Unauthorized resale of real brands
Legal services	"Bankruptcy attorneys", "Bail bonds"
Lending and credit	"Loan repayments with credit cards", credit repair and counseling; credit monitoring is "supportable in the United States"	Changed in the September 2026 update
Marijuana	Cannabis products and dispensaries, cultivation equipment and courses, and products derived from cannabis above the local THC limit	The legal limit is local
Nutraceuticals and pseudo-pharmaceuticals	"Pseudo-pharmaceuticals or nutraceuticals that are not safe or make harmful claims"	Supplements are not banned as such
Nonfiat currency	"Cryptocurrency mining and staking", "Initial coin offerings (ICOs)", "Secondary NFT sales"
Travel	"Commercial airlines and cruises", international charter and private airlines, "Timeshare services"
Unfair, deceptive, or abusive acts or practices	15 lines, see below	The one that catches ecommerce

The lines that catch ecommerce brands

Most ecommerce closures don't come from the product. They come from how it's sold. Stripe files these lines under acts or practices that contravene rules of the "Federal Trade Commission, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, or other local consumer regulatory bodies"1.

Businesses that make outrageous claims, use deceptive testimonials, use high-pressure upselling, or use fake testimonials (with or without a written contract)

Stripe, Prohibited and restricted businesses, updated September 22, 2026

Trials and auto-ship: "Negative option marketing, negative option membership clubs, and reduced price trials with unclear or hidden pricing"1. The rules for compliant trials: free trials and negative option billing.
Incentives: "Businesses offering unrealistic incentives or rewards as an inducement to purchase products or services"1.
Recruitment sales: "Multilevel marketing services offering commission or recruitment-based sales" and "Pyramid schemes"1.
Traffic: "Sales of online traffic or engagement"1.
Catch-all: "Any other businesses that Stripe considers unfair, deceptive, or predatory towards consumers"1.

For supplements and skincare, the claims line works together with the nutraceuticals line. A product making drug-like promises falls under both. In detail: what "pseudo-pharmaceutical" means.

Restricted businesses: what needs Stripe's approval

Restricted businesses can use Stripe after a review. Some carry "Limited availability", where Stripe asks you to contact its sales team first1.

Stripe category	Examples from the list	Note
Content creation platforms	Platforms that let creators get tips or sell exclusive content	Creators selling on their own site don't need preapproval
Crowdfunding and fundraising	Nonprofits, charities, political organizations, crowdfunding platforms	Some lines supported only in listed countries
Dating	"Online dating and matchmaking services"	Specific prohibitions in India, the UAE and Thailand
Cyberlockers	"Cyberlocker and file-sharing services"
Products derived from cannabis	Only "negligible amounts of THC, per local limits"	Sold only where local law allows
Cryptocurrency	Exchanges and wallets	Limited availability
Financial products and services	Investment, lending, "Buy now, pay later services", money transmitters, escrow	Contact sales
Legal firearms and other weapons	Firearms, regulated parts, stun guns, pepper spray	Limited availability
Pharmaceuticals, medical devices, and telemedicine	"Online pharmacies, including SaaS platforms", "Card-not-present prescription-only products and pharmaceuticals", "Telemedicine and telehealth services"	Telemedicine reviewed case by case2
Tobacco	Tobacco products, e-cigarettes, e-liquid, "Herbal and vitamin e-cigarettes and cigarettes"	In the US, only FDA-authorized electronic tobacco
Nonfiat currency and stored value	NFT minting, "High-value goods, precious metals and stones", gift cards, in-game currency
Third-party agents	"Payment facilitation and aggregation"
Travel	"Travel reservation services and clubs", "In-flight purchases", domestic charter air travel	Listed as "elevated financial risk"

Source: Stripe, list updated September 22, 20261.

Country-specific prohibitions

Stripe adds extra bans in 11 countries. Check yours if your business is registered there: the general list doesn't show them1.

Country	Examples of lines added
United States	"Extended warranties", "Mortgage consulting", "Medical benefit packages not offered by a government or health insurance company", shipping brokers "without prior authorization from Stripe"
Canada	Alcohol (restricted), mortgage consulting
Mexico	"Telemedicine", "HCG weight loss", "Ephedrine", "Search engine optimization", psychic services
Thailand	"Vitamins", alcohol, dating services (prohibited); "Food and cosmetics" (restricted)
Japan	Dropshipping advice, "Health instruments", and businesses without the commerce disclosure page Japanese law requires
India	23 lines, including alcohol, charities, dating, "Cross-border jewelry sales"

Source: Stripe, list updated September 22, 20261. Brazil, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and the UAE have their own lines too.

Prohibited uses: rules for every business

Even an allowed business can break Stripe's rules by how it uses the account. These lines apply "regardless of the industry"1.

"Use of Stripe products with false, manipulated, inaccurate, or misleading information regarding your identity, business entity, the nature of the business"1
"Use of Stripe products to facilitate transactions on behalf of another undisclosed merchant or for products or services that weren't disclosed in the business's Stripe account application"1
"Use of Stripe principally as a virtual terminal"1
"Processing where there is no bona fide good or service sold, or donation accepted; card testing"1
"Evasion of card network chargeback monitoring programs"1
"Cross-border acquiring where the business address of the merchant is outside of the jurisdiction of the acquiring Stripe entity, unless permitted under the card network rules"1
"Sharing cardholder information with another business for payment of cross-sell of products or services"1

Stripe also asks you to notify it "immediately" of any change to your personal and business information1. A new product line counts.

Watch out

Spreading sales over several accounts to stay under a dispute threshold is evasion. Visa can fine the acquirer up to $25,000 per merchant per month for altering merchant data to dodge its monitoring programs9. How to run several accounts within the rules: multiple merchant accounts.

What happens if you sell a prohibited or undeclared product anyway

The account is reviewed, payouts stop, and the balance stays with Stripe while risk remains. Stripe's agreement says it "may terminate this Agreement or close User's Stripe Account at any time"3.

Fig. 2After Stripe finds an undeclared product

ReviewTriggered by a product, a page or disputes
Payouts pausedTypically 120 days from the first email
Formal reviewRelease all, part, or keep holding
ClosureExport cards to a PCI DSS Level 1 processor

The money is held long after the account closes.

Stripe Unacceptable Risk Policy, updated July 29, 2026; Stripe Docs, read October 2026.

Payouts: Stripe "will typically restrict or pause payouts to the User's bank account for 120 days from the date the User receives the initial email notifying them of the actions applied to their account"4.
Reserve: in some rare cases, "a reserve may be required indefinitely"5.
Subscribers: Stripe exports saved cards only to a PCI DSS Level 1 processor, and doesn't export subscriptions or payment history6.
Your record: if the acquirer terminates you for a listed reason, such as illegal transactions or a violation of network standards, you can be placed on MATCH for 5 years7.

If Stripe rejected you for an item, its FAQ says you can remove the item and ask for a new review, with a link to the page that shows it's gone2. The full recovery plan: merchant account closed and funds held.

If Stripe can't support your business

Pick the route that matches your status. None of them involves hiding what you sell.

Restricted: apply through Stripe and send the licenses and business details it asks for. Approval is per service and can be revoked1.
Not supported, but legal: apply to a provider that underwrites your category before you process. See high-risk merchant account and merchant account approval.
On Shopify Payments: the same lists apply, since Shopify's prohibited categories "are provided by each Payment Processor"8. See high-risk payments for Shopify stores.
Allowed, but exposed: keep Stripe for what it accepts and set up a second, declared processor before you need it. See how to switch payment processors.

Stripe decides what falls under each line. Declare every product, wherever you process.

By industry

Industry	Where Stripe's list touches it	Guide
Supplements	Not named. The nutraceuticals line, claims and trial offers apply	Does Stripe allow supplements?
Skincare	Not named. Drug-like claims fall under the same lines	Does Stripe allow skincare products?
Online pharmacy	RestrictedNot prohibited: approval first, and only in the US, Canada, the EU, Australia, the UK and Japan	Does Stripe allow prescription drugs?
Telehealth	Restricted"Telemedicine and telehealth services" are reviewed case by case, and prohibited for Stripe accounts in Mexico	Does Stripe allow telehealth services?
Fitness	Not named. Sports nutrition falls under the supplement line; Stripe's Afterpay/Clearpay terms restrict fitness equipment	Does Stripe allow fitness products?
Info products	Not named. The lines are "get rich quick" schemes, deceptive testimonials, high-pressure upselling and hidden-price memberships	Does Stripe allow info products and online courses?

How Tagada helps

An underwritten processor next to Stripe

TagadaPay managed or your own processor: onboarding, underwriting, acquiring, settlement, payouts and disputes can run through TagadaPay, or you connect a merchant account you already have (processors in Tagada).
Every file is underwritten, with enhanced review on regulated verticals; "Supplements / nutra" is among the listed industries.
Refusals stated upfront: falsified documents, counterfeits, chargeback circumvention, deceptive marketing around trials, subscriptions and cancellation, and MATCH-listed merchants.
Routing across TagadaPay and processors such as Stripe, NMI and Airwallex with one logic, and cascade to another processor when one is down or times out.
"If you sell something real, we will get you paid." Enhanced review for regulated verticals, with 100+ verticals live.
Live in 24h: "One KYC. One signed package." TagadaPay distributes it across its processor network and follows up, and most merchants are live in under 24 hours.
From 2.9% + $0.29, no setup fees, no monthly minimums. High-risk verticals and edge cases are priced case by case.

Tagada follows Visa and Mastercard rules and the laws that apply to payments.

Apply today · Go live in under 24 hours

Apply for processing

An underwritten processor next to Stripe

Updated on November 2, 2026

Nick Bonnassies

CMO at Tagada

CMO at Tagada. Before Tagada, Nick built direct-to-consumer brands that generated over $115M in sales, raised over $25M in crowdfunding and sold two of them. He also works as a fractional CMO on marketing operations and AI systems.

Frequently asked questions

What businesses are prohibited on Stripe?

Stripe prohibits illegal products, adult content, debt relief, many financial services, gambling, illegal weapons, counterfeits, marijuana, unsafe nutraceuticals, crypto mining, airlines and cruises, and unfair or deceptive practices such as hidden-price trials. Its list, updated September 22, 2026, says these are examples and "not an exhaustive list".

What is the difference between prohibited and restricted on Stripe?

A prohibited business can't use Stripe, except in rare cases with explicit prior approval. A restricted business can, after Stripe's "additional due diligence": licenses or details on your business model at sign-up. Approval is specific to each service and "may be modified or revoked by Stripe at any time".

Can a prohibited business get approved by Stripe?

Sometimes. Stripe's FAQ says it might support listed businesses "with explicit prior approval", but "Certain categories, including illegal products or services, are never eligible". Ask before you process, never after. Selling a product you didn't declare is itself a prohibited use.

Does Stripe allow supplements?

Yes, by default. Supplements aren't named on either list. Stripe prohibits "Pseudo-pharmaceuticals or nutraceuticals that are not safe or make harmful claims", and its practice lines cover hidden-price trials and high-pressure upselling. More in our guide on whether Stripe allows supplements.

What happens if I sell a prohibited product on Stripe?

Stripe can close the account at any time. When it acts for unacceptable risk, it typically pauses payouts for 120 days from its first email, then reviews the balance. A reserve can last longer, cards export only to a PCI DSS Level 1 processor, and a termination can lead to a MATCH listing.

Does Shopify Payments follow Stripe's prohibited list?

For the part Stripe processes, yes. Shopify Payments' US terms say prohibited and restricted categories "are provided by each Payment Processor". A product Stripe prohibits is off-limits on Shopify Payments too, even if your store itself is allowed.