Our license is not limitless and we cannot always support every business model. New restricted categories may be added or existing ones removed depending on our partners. We will do our best to update the list as soon as possible. For further questions please contact our Support Team.

The following business categories cannot always be supported:

  • Future business: The period from when the transaction is processed to when the goods or service is provided cannot exceed 1 year. If this period is longer than 1 year, your company is classified as a future business (for example, if the company sells concert tickets outside the box office).

  • Travel services

    • Airlines

    • Air Carriers

    • Cruise lines

    • Travel clubs

    • Timeshare related businesses

  • Motorcycle Shops and Dealers

  • Car and Truck Dealers (New and Used) Sales, Service, Repairs, Parts, and Leasing

  • Collection Agencies

    • Debt repayment and collection agency

    • Fines or penalty collections of any kind

  • Bail/ Bail Bond

    • Bail Bondsperson

    • Collection Agencies

    • Bailiffs

  • Personal Protection Services

    • Protective Services

    • Body Guards 

    • Sales or supply of Armoured vehicles 

    • Guard Dogs

  • Firearms

    • Firearm parts

    • Ammunition

    • Gun Clubs

    • Weapons of war 

    • Explosives

  • Investments of any kind including but not limited to the purchase of or investment in

    • Investments

    • Precious metals and stones (eg Bullion, Gold. Silver. Diamonds, etc)

    • Business investment opportunities operating as ‘get rich quick schemes’

    • Contract for difference (CFD)

    • Financial spread betting

    • Trading and purchases

    • Securities

    • Currencies

    • Derivatives

    • Commodities

    • Shares

    • Options

    • Other financial instruments

    • Cryptocurrency (Of any kind)

    • Initial coin offering

    • Binary options trading

  • Gambling The wagering of money or something of value on an event with an uncertain outcome, with the primary intent of winning money or material goods that includes but is not limited to:

  • Advance-deposit wagering, including horse/dog racing

    • Fantasy sports

    • Skill-based, pay-to-play games that award monetary prizes

    • Games of chance that are not free to enter and award monetary prizes

    • Non-government-owned or run lotteries Gambling chips

    • Gambling credits

    • Casinos

    • Poker

    • Bingo

    • slot machines

    • Betting

    • Racing

    • fantasy sports

    • Betting shops/bookmakers

    • Gambling houses

    • Spread betting (including financial spread betting, contracts for difference, and FX trading)

    • Sports forecasting or odds-making

    • (online gambling) Gambling or gaming-related activities

  • Real Estate

    • Property Sale

    • Commercial Leasing

  • Political Organisation

    • Political Organisation

    • Political Party Donations

  • Adult Services 

    • Illegal or legal adult services including but not limited to:

    • Companion/Escort services (adult and non-adult including Internet)

    • Prostitution (adult and non-adult including Internet)

    • Sexual encounter firms

    • Adult entertainment/Pornography

    • Gentleman's clubs, topless bars, strip clubs

    • sexually oriented massage parlours, saunas

    • Miscellaneous adult entertainment (not elsewhere classified)

    • Membership, clubs, subscriptions

    • Any products on the internet containing graphic or nude content − Any illegal activity (e.g. child pornography, bestiality etc)

    • Video (web-based sexually oriented video)

    • Artificial intelligence (AI) generated Adult entertainment/Pornography or services.

  • Illegal and legal highs and drug-related products 

    • The sale or provision of Illegal or legal high and drug-related products, services or related goods including but not limited to:

    • Marijuana-Related Businesses, Medical Marijuana including Marijuana dispensaries (and affiliated services)

    • Illegal activities (products, services or any services providing peripheral support thereof, including drug paraphernalia)

    • Drugs, and tools specifically intended for the production of drugs, drug paraphernalia, illegal drugs, substances designed to mimic illegal drugs and/or other psychoactive products

    • Substances designed to mimic illegal drugs and/or other psychoactive products (e.g., K2, salvia divinorum, nitrite inhalers, bath salts, synthetic cannabis, kratom, (herbal smoking blends & herbal incense)

    • Products or services specifically offered or intended to be used to create, produce or grow drugs or drug ingredients

    • Cannabidiol products

    • Cannabis seeds

    • CBD

    • Head shops

  • Auction Houses

    • Auction Houses

    • Bidding fee and penny auctions

    • Internet-based auction sites

  • Credit Financing

  • Cash at Point of Sale / Cash on Card

  • Foreign Currency, Money Orders (Not Wire Transfer), Stored Value Card/Load, and Travelers Cheques

  • Licensed Insolvency Practitioners

  • Financial service providers operating without a licence

  • Insurance or broker agencies operating without regulation

  • Employment Agencies and Temporary Help Services

  • Cosmetic surgery, body enhancers and services

    • Non-essential (improvement type) cosmetic surgery

    • Sale and supply of Botox injections (Online)

    • Products with questionable efficiency: may include but not limited to Pseudo-pharmaceuticals (weight-loss, diet pills, anti-ageing pills, anti-wrinkle creams, teeth whitening products, muscle building, sexual stimulants supplements, male enhancement products, colon cleansers, detox products, glucose strips, hCG, HGH-like substances, anti-ageing pills, sex nutrients, vitamins etc)

    • None medical steroids

  • Questionable businesses and products

    • Any illegal activity or goods

    • Paraphernalia that may be used for illegal activity

    • Mail-order spouse or international match-making services

    • Human body parts or bodily fluids (excluding hair and teeth)

    • Replica or counterfeit products that infringe on copyright or similar

    • Deceptive marketing tactics related to disclosure, false or inaccurate claims, before/after claims, endorsements, cancellation or refund avoidance, pre-checked opt-ins, poorly disclosed negative options, misappropriation of incentives, disproportionate rebates, sweepstakes

    • Fake references and other services or products that foster deception Inbound telemarketing for postcards or mailings

    • Counterfeit medical goods or devices that are not approved for sale, or expired

    • Links to ‘illegal good entry’

    • Goods that violate intellectual property rights

    • Illegal/banned goods and services according to the law in the relevant jurisdiction and the rules and regulations of the card schemes

    • Shell banks

    • Sale of stolen or misappropriated goods 

    • Business models that use ransom- or extortion-like practices

  • Products or services that promote hate, violence, discrimination, terrorism, harassment or abuse in any shape or form, Hate or harmful products or are related to Terrorism individuals and organisations as listed by applicable governments.

  • Direct Marketing – Inbound teleservices, outbound telemarketing and travel-related arrangement services, Insurance services, catalogue merchants, door-to-door sales

  • Insurance Sales, Underwriting, and Premiums

  • Pyramid selling / Multi-level marketing where the primary objective is the solicitation of new distributors and not the sale of products/services

Additionally, there are more businesses that we can’t support when using card-not-present transactions.

  • Alcohol stores

  • Pharmacy and Nutrition

  • Sale of tobacco products and e-Cigarettes

Charitable or non-profit organizations may be supported by SumUp, however, like all SumUp customers, they must at all times comply with applicable financial sanction regime regulations. SumUp products and services must in no way be used for raising funds in violation of financial sanction regime regulations, including but not limited to financing terrorism and/or use involving sanctioned countries.

If one of these categories describes your business type (either completely or in part) and you are already a SumUp merchant, we kindly ask you to contact our Support Team.

For companies with more than 100 employees that fall in the categories above, please get in touch with our Support Team.

Important:

Please note that SumUp and its products are intended for business use only.