What a Nuvei charge means

What the line is

Opened 20 October 2026. Nuvei's payment facilitator page says the dynamic descriptor is the submerchant name and contact information that the card issuer displays on the transaction line of the customer's card statement. The merchant name field is 22 characters. The format is a prefix, then a star, then the shop name. The prefix is approved by Nuvei's underwriting team. It can be 3, 7, 9, or 12 characters. The shop name that follows can be 18, 14, 12, or 9 characters, so the whole name still fits in 22. The page does not say the prefix is the word NUVEI.

The same class has a merchant phone field of 13 characters. Nuvei says that contact is displayed for the transaction on the consumer's card statement, and that it can be a phone number or an email address. A card issuer can still shorten what it prints. Read the shop name and the contact, not only the first word.

Nuvei's virtual terminal page describes a static descriptor and a dynamic descriptor as two different things. A static descriptor is displayed if it is configured for all payment methods and acquirer banks. If that static descriptor changes by payment method or by acquirer bank, the virtual terminal does not show it there, but the cardholder still sees it on the transaction confirmation. A dynamic descriptor can be added as well. A line with no star can still be a Nuvei charge. Match the shop name.

How to match it to a purchase

Copy the text after the star, and the phone or email if one is on the line. Search email for that shop and for the amount. The prefix is the payment company's short name. The shop is the part you are looking for.

Nuvei is used by shops in Canada and by shops elsewhere. The payment facilitator page does not print a separate prefix for a US card or a Canadian card. Use the shop name on your own line.

A saved card or a family member can be a real purchase. Match the date and the amount before you call it fraud.

If you do not recognize it

If the date and the amount do not match a receipt, an email, or a purchase someone on the card made, it may be a charge you did not allow. In the United States, use dispute a charge in the US. In Canada, use dispute a charge in Canada. A name you still cannot place is on unknown charge on a statement. The code list is on statement codes.

A similar shop line from another processor is on Moneris. Upload the statement on Expenvo. The PDF stays on your device. Expenvo lists the lines so you can match a short name to a date and an amount. It does not call the bank, and it does not dispute a charge.

Questions

Does every Nuvei charge start with NUVEI*?

No. The payment facilitator page does not print that prefix. It says the merchant name is an approved prefix, a star, and the shop name, up to 22 characters together.

Why is there a phone number or an email on the line?

Nuvei says the merchant phone field is displayed on the consumer's card statement. That field is 13 characters, and it can be a phone number or an email address.

What if there is no star?

The virtual terminal page says a static descriptor can be shown when it is configured for the payment methods and acquirer banks. A dynamic descriptor is extra. Match the shop name either way.

Who do I dispute it with?

Match the shop name and the amount first. If nobody allowed the charge, dispute it with the card issuer. The US and Canada dispute pages on this site are the steps.

Sources

• Nuvei: payment facilitators, dynamic descriptor
• Nuvei: virtual terminal, static and dynamic descriptor

Related guides

• Statement codes
• Unknown charge on a statement
• Dispute a charge in the US
• Dispute a charge in Canada
• Moneris on a statement