Level 2 / Level 3 DataB2B Interchange Data & Corporate Card Rates
Level 2 / Level 3 Data — Definition & Guide
Level 2 level 3 data refers to additional transaction information submitted alongside B2B and government card payments to qualify for reduced interchange rates on level 3 data corporate cards and government purchasing cards. Level 1 is the baseline — card number, amount, date. Level 2 adds tax amount and purchase order number. Level 3 adds full line-item detail including product descriptions, quantities, unit prices, freight, and discount amounts. The more complete the data submitted, the lower the interchange rate the card network applies to qualifying corporate and purchasing card transactions. The Federal Reserve’s interchange fee data reflects the scale of B2B card volume where these qualifications apply.
Corporate and purchasing cards carry higher interchange rates than standard consumer cards — the issuing bank uses that revenue to fund expense management tools and rewards programs for business cardholders. But card networks offer a trade: if the merchant submits richer transaction data alongside the payment, the network reduces the interchange rate on that transaction — the core mechanism to reduce interchange B2B merchants pay on corporate card volume.
That is the Level 2 / Level 3 data system. It exists because the additional data — line items, PO numbers, tax amounts — gives the cardholder’s finance team better expense reporting. The merchant gets a lower rate in exchange for providing it. Both sides benefit, but only if the merchant’s payment system is configured to submit the right fields.
Before switching processors entirely, there are tactical ways to reduce your processing rate within your current account.
Most merchants who could benefit from this never do — either because their processor has not configured it, or because nobody told them it was an option. The CFPB’s payment transparency guidance makes clear that merchants have the right to understand their fee structures — but exercising that right requires knowing what to ask.
Each level adds data fields that qualify the transaction for progressively lower interchange:
Your payment system — terminal, gateway, or software integration — must be configured to capture and transmit these additional fields. Not all gateways support Level 3 data submission. Confirm with your processor whether your current setup qualifies corporate card transactions at the enhanced data rate.
Visa replaced its Level 3 program with the Commercial Enhanced Data Program (CEDP) in October 2025. Under CEDP, Visa validates the quality of submitted data in real time — merchants who consistently submit complete, accurate line-item data receive “verified” status and qualify for reduced Product 3 interchange rates. The Level 2 program sunsets in April 2026.
Mastercard’s Level 2 and Level 3 programs remain unchanged for now. For merchants processing Visa corporate card volume, CEDP compliance is the current standard. See our blog post on what your processor is not telling you about CEDP for the full picture.
Level 2 data adds tax amount and a customer code or PO number to a B2B card transaction. It qualifies corporate and purchasing cards at reduced interchange rates compared to standard Level 1 processing. Visa’s Level 2 program sunsets in April 2026.
Level 3 data includes full line-item detail — product descriptions, quantities, unit prices, freight, and discount amounts. It qualifies B2B and government card transactions at the lowest available interchange rates. For Visa, Level 3 has been replaced by the CEDP program effective October 2025.
Yes. Your payment integration or gateway must be configured to capture and transmit the additional data fields. Not all gateways support Level 3 or CEDP submission — confirm with your processor whether your setup is configured to qualify corporate card transactions at the enhanced data rate.
B2B merchants who regularly accept corporate, purchasing, or government cards — contractors, manufacturers, distributors, professional services firms, and wholesalers. The higher your average ticket and the more corporate cards in your mix, the more meaningful the interchange savings. Learn more about payment processing consumer protections from the CFPB.
One alternative removes the Level 2 / Level 3 question entirely: ACH bank transfers carry no interchange, so there is no qualification data to supply and no downgrade to avoid. For B2B merchants whose customers are other businesses paying invoices, collecting by ACH bypasses the corporate-card interchange problem altogether. Card optimization through Level 2 and Level 3 data still matters for the customers who pay by card — but ACH is frequently the cheaper default when the buyer is a business. The full B2B ACH cost-gap analysis covers when ACH wins outright.
Corporate Card Transactions Without Level 2 or Level 3 Data Pay Up to 100 Basis Points Extra.
Send us your last processing statement. We will identify the share of your volume running on commercial cards, check whether your gateway is submitting the enhanced data fields required for Level 2/3 qualification, and show you what a fair effective rate looks like at your volume.
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