Authorize.net: Descriptor & ARN Guide

Finding Your Billing Descriptor & ARNs for Authorize.net

Navigate to any Visa transaction and look for the following information:

• Merchant Name: Your billing descriptor
• Reference #: Your ARN

⚠️ Important Notes

• Each Reference Numbers / ARN must:
  • Be 23 digits long
  • Start with a 2 or 7
  • Come from a Visa transaction
• You need 4 Reference Numbers (ARNs) to complete setup in Chargeback.io.
• You don't need to submit more than 4 ARNs. This won't speed up enrollment.

If you don’t have any refunds yet, or if you have fewer than four Reference Numbers, you’ll need to create test refunds to generate them.

Alternatively, you can use your BINs and CAID (also called B&C) instead of ARNs / Reference Numbers.

Follow this guide to learn how to:

• Get your B&C, or
• Perform test refunds to create Reference Numbers.

How to Add Descriptor(s) & ARNs

Here's how and where to add your descriptor(s) and ARNs:

1. In the sidebar, click Alerts to expand the dropdown.
2. Select Configure.
3. Click + Enroll More Descriptors.
4. Click Continue on the Integration page.
5. Enter your billing descriptor(s) in the field labeled Billing Descriptor.
   1. If you have more than one, separate them with commas.
6. During the RDR enrollment process, enter 4 Visa ARNs, separating each with commas.

Activation Times

• CDRN and Ethoca: ~12 hours.
• RDR: ~7+ business days.

These aren't guaranteed activation times. See this guide to learn when they may take longer.