Discover Payment Decline Code
Discover Decline Code 05: Do Not Honor
Category General DeclineRetry Guidance Conditional Decline (Editorial Classification)By Payment Defender Editorial TeamUpdated July 17, 2026Last reviewed July 17, 2026
What Discover Decline Code 05 Means
Discover decline code 05 (Do Not Honor) indicates that the issuing bank declined the transaction without providing a specific reason.
Where the Response May Come From
Code 05 is a general issuer refusal returned at authorization without a stated reason, driven by the issuer's own risk rules or account conditions. Only the issuer knows the specific trigger, so its response and any cardholder contact with the bank are the authoritative reference.
Common Reasons for This Response
Common causes include issuer risk rules, temporary account restrictions, unusual spending patterns, or issuer suspicion about the transaction context.
Should the Merchant Retry the Payment?
Because the cause is undisclosed, a retry may or may not succeed; a single spaced attempt could clear a temporary hold, but if the issuer's underlying condition persists the response will repeat, so confirm context with your processor before reattempting.
Recommended Merchant Action
Avoid rapid repeated retries; a single, spaced attempt within network rules may be worthwhile, and if code 05 recurs on an account, ask the customer to check with their bank or use another card.
What to Tell the Customer
Let the customer know their bank declined the payment and suggest they contact the bank or try a different card.
How to Reduce Similar Payment Failures
Segmenting code 05 declines by issuer and retrying selectively within network limits helps distinguish recoverable temporary refusals from persistent ones and protects approval rates.
Important Limitations
Decline-code meanings vary by processor, gateway, and payment environment, and issuers do not always disclose the specific reason behind a response. The retry classification on this page is Payment Defender editorial guidance, not an official network rule. Merchants should confirm handling with their processor or gateway.
Related Decline Codes
Sources and Review Information
Last reviewed July 17, 2026
Raw network-response codes are supplemental to the complete processor or gateway response. Meanings and recommended actions can vary by issuer, processor, gateway, card network, payment method, region, and merchant configuration.