Discover Card Merchant Class Action Settlement

If you received a notice by mail or email, that is because records indicate that you may be a Settlement Class Member in a settlement involving three related lawsuits against Discover. The lawsuits allege that, beginning in 2007, Discover misclassified certain Discover-issued consumer credit cards as commercial credit cards, which in turn caused merchants and others to incur excessive interchange fees.

Plaintiffs filed three related class action lawsuits alleging that beginning in 2007, Discover misclassified certain Discover-issued consumer credit cards as commercial credit cards, which in turn caused merchants and others to incur excessive interchange fees. Discover denies the claims in the lawsuits, and the Court has not decided who is right or wrong. The operative complaints in these lawsuits are at the Documents tab.

A copy of the Settlement Agreement may be found at the Documents tab.

An interchange fee is a transaction fee paid when a customer uses a debit or credit card to make a purchase. The fee charged for a particular transaction may depend on multiple factors, sometimes including the type of Discover card used in the transaction.

A class action is a type of lawsuit in which one or more people (or entities) sue on behalf of themselves and other people (or entities) with similar claims. When a class action is settled, all of these people (or entities) together make up the class and are class members. One court will determine if the settlement is fair for all class members, except for those who exclude themselves from the class.

The Settlement Class for this settlement is defined as: All End Merchants, Merchant Acquirers, and Payment Intermediaries involved in processing or accepting a Misclassified Card Transaction during the period from January 1, 2007 through December 31, 2023. Excluded from the Settlement Class are certain people and entities listed on Exhibit A to the Settlement Agreement. A copy of the Settlement Agreement may be found at the Documents tab.

An “End Merchant” is an individual or business entity that during 2007-2023 accepted a Discover-issued credit card directly from a person as payment in exchange for goods or services. End Merchants may contract directly with Discover to accept Discover credit cards, or they may contract through a third party.

A “Merchant Acquirer” is a business entity that during 2007-2023 had an agreement with Discover to facilitate Discover credit card transactions and was characterized by Discover’s rules and regulations as an “Acquirer”.

A “Payment Intermediary” is a business entity that during 2007-2023 processed Discover credit card transactions on behalf of another business but is neither an End Merchant nor a Merchant Acquirer.

Generally speaking, a “Direct End Merchant” is an End Merchant that has (or had) a written contractual relationship directly with Discover to accept Discover credit cards. Written contractual relationships directly with Discover are relatively uncommon.

If you received a notice of this settlement by mail or email, records from Discover or another source indicate you may be a Settlement Class Member. That notice may also indicate which type of Settlement Class Member you likely are.

A “Misclassified Card Transaction” means a Discover credit card transaction in which, at the time of processing and according to the records of Discover, the credit card account was classified by Discover Bank as a “commercial” credit card but should have been classified as a consumer credit card (i.e., a “rewards,” “premium,” or “premium plus” card).

For complete definitions of important terms, please refer to the Settlement Agreement, available at the Documents tab.

“Discover Credit Card Transaction,” as defined in the Settlement Agreement, means a transaction subject to United States pricing made for the purpose of accepting or facilitating a payment in exchange for the delivery of goods or services made using a credit card account issued by Discover Bank. You will need to consult your merchant services agreement to determine what pricing model you are transacting under if you processed international transactions during the Relevant Period.

A “MID” is the merchant identifier code used by Discover in its merchant acquiring systems to identify an End Merchant. Where no such code exists, a “MID” may refer to the substitute code created by the Settlement Administrator for purposes of this settlement.

You can login to the claimant portal using the email address and password you entered. You may then view your MIDs list via your “My Claims” page on the settlement website. Please note, your MIDs list may change as the Settlement Administrator receives additional information from other sources. If no MIDs are currently listed, please check back. A final list of MIDs associated with your business will be reported in a determination letter, which the Settlement Administrator will send you before settlement payments are calculated.

If you have no MIDs on your MID list available through the claims portal:

If you have filed a claim:

The complete terms of the proposed settlement are set forth in the Settlement Agreement, which is available at the Documents tab. The long form notice, also available at the Documents tab, provides a summary of the terms of the Settlement Agreement.

If the settlement is approved and becomes final, Discover will provide payments to eligible Settlement Class Members who submit valid claims and/or provide additional information to the extent required.

Yes. If you submit a timely and valid claim and provide additional information to the extent required, before settlement payments are issued, the Settlement Administrator will provide you with a determination notice with your settlement payment amount, and you will be given the option to challenge such amount by providing additional documentation for the Settlement Administrator’s consideration.

A MID Amount is an estimate of the interchange fee overcharge, as determined using the methodology detailed in the Long Form Notice and Settlement Agreement, for a Discover merchant identifier (called a “MID”). The MID Amount should not be confused with the settlement payment amount, which could vary greatly. The settlement payment amount will depend on a variety of factors, including the Merchant Acquirer (if any), Payment Intermediaries (if any), and End Merchant(s) associated with a particular MID and how interchange fee charges for each MID are allocated among claimants associated with the same MID. It is possible that Epiq will not know what MID or MIDs are associated with your business until after it receives additional information from Merchant Acquirers and Payment Intermediaries, which is a process that will span several months. Before settlement payment amounts are finalized, Epiq will send you a determination letter explaining how any interchange fee overcharges associated with your business were allocated and you will have the opportunity to dispute that allocation.

With limited exceptions, to receive a settlement payment, you will need to file a claim. Some businesses will also need to provide additional information to the Settlement Administrator. The information you need to provide, and when, depends on which type of Settlement Class Member you are. The type of Settlement Class Member you are depends on your role in processing or accepting Discover credit card transactions and your relationship with Discover.

Settlement payments will be issued after the settlement is approved and becomes final and all processing activities are complete. Actions like objections and appeals may extend the timeline. Continue to check this website for updates.

Settlement checks will be valid for 120 days after they are issued. For any settlement payment checks that are not timely cashed or cannot be successfully delivered following reasonable efforts by the Settlement Administrator, those residual amounts will be distributed to a non-profit educational or public benefit organization as a cy pres recipient to be proposed by Settlement Class Counsel with input from Discover, subject to Court approval.

The settlement covers Misclassified Card Transactions during the period from January 1, 2007 through December 31, 2023.

The deadline to file claims was May 18, 2026. You may still visit the Submit a Claim tab to file a claim online, or visit the Documents tab to download a copy of the general claim form, but please be aware we cannot guarantee that late claims will be considered.

No, it is free to file a claim. The deadline to file claims was May 18, 2026. You may still visit the Submit a Claim tab to file a claim online, or visit the Documents tab to download a copy of the general claim form, but please be aware we cannot guarantee that late claims will be considered.

If you submit a claim online, you will receive a confirmation code on the submission page and a copy will be sent to the email address you used for registration. Be sure to check Junk or SPAM inboxes if you do not see the confirmation email.

It is possible that you registered on the settlement website but have not yet submitted a claim. Please note that registering is not the same as filing a claim.

Please be aware, the Court-approved deadline to file claims passed on May 18, 2026. We cannot guarantee that late claims will be considered; however, you can proceed with filing although your Notice cannot be remailed at this point.

If you or your businesses qualify as more than one Settlement Class Member type, or use multiple Taxpayer Identification Numbers, you may receive more than one notice about this settlement with instructions pertaining to more than one unique Claimant ID and PIN. To receive the full amount of any payment to which you are entitled, please follow the instructions for each unique Claimant ID and PIN you receive.

To administer the settlement effectively, we have grouped data on a TIN-by-TIN basis. A unique record will be created for each TIN, and only the transactional data associated with that TIN will be available on that record. Alternatively, you may have received multiple notices because your business qualifies under more than one merchant type. Furthermore, there may be instances where later received data yields additional MID associations for your business. Please note we are not able to combine transactional data from multiple TINs under one claim.

Please be aware, the Court-approved deadline to file claims passed on May 18, 2026. We cannot guarantee that late claims will be considered.

Please be aware, the Court-approved deadline to file claims passed on May 18, 2026. We cannot guarantee that late claims will be considered.

Please be aware, the Court-approved deadline to file claims passed on May 18, 2026. We cannot guarantee that late claims will be considered.

It is possible that you registered on the settlement website but have not yet submitted a claim. Please note that registering is not the same as filing a claim.

After you have registered and filed a claim, you can login to the claimant portal using the email address and password you entered when you filed your claim.

When you register at www.DiscoverMerchantSettlement.com and file a claim, the confirmation page includes a link to a popup window where you can provide your ACH/banking/account information.

You cannot delete or withdraw a claim you already submitted.

Notices and claim form mailings ceased on April 30, 2026.

If you go to www.DiscoverMerchantSettlement.com, in the Documents tab, you can download copies of the Long Form Notice and the General Claim Form that have been translated into Korean, Thai, Russian, Vietnamese, Chinese, Spanish, or Japanese.

The Claimant ID is a unique alphanumeric code created for your business by the Settlement Administrator. The Claimant ID is linked to a unique TIN in the data Epiq received from Discover or another source. The Claimant ID and the PIN were provided to login to the Settlement Website and file an online claim.

Most Settlement Class Members are Indirect End Merchants.

• fill out the claim form you received in the mail and mail it to the Settlement Administrator at the address listed in the form; or
• download a copy of the claim form, fill it out, and mail it to the Settlement Administrator at the address listed in the form.

Generally speaking, a Direct End Merchant is an End Merchant that has (or had) a written contractual relationship with Discover to accept Discover credit cards. Written contractual relationships directly with Discover are relatively uncommon.

To receive a settlement payment as an Inactive Direct End Merchant, you must Submit a Claim. Please be aware, the Court-approved deadline to file claims passed on May 18, 2026. We cannot guarantee that late claims will be considered.

An Active Direct End Merchant is an End Merchant that (a) has a current written contractual relationship directly with Discover to accept Discover credit cards and that has processed a Discover credit card transaction at any time since May 1, 2025, or (b) had a written contractual relationship directly with Discover to accept Discover credit cards at one point between 2007 and 2023 and that the Settlement Administrator has determined to a reasonable degree of confidence was still in operation as of July 30, 2025.

To receive payment, submit your payment information via the Submit a Claim option. Please be aware, the Court-approved deadline to file claims passed on May 18, 2026. We cannot guarantee that late claims will be considered.

An Active Direct End Merchant is an End Merchant that (a) has a current written contractual relationship directly with Discover to accept Discover credit cards and that has processed a Discover credit card transaction at any time since May 1, 2025, or (b) had a written contractual relationship directly with Discover to accept Discover credit cards at one point between 2007 and 2023 and that the Settlement Administrator has determined to a reasonable degree of confidence was still in operation as of July 30, 2025. Written contractual relationships directly with Discover are relatively uncommon.

You have already been deemed payment eligible. Once the settlement is approved and becomes final, a payment will be sent to you at the address on file with the Settlement Administrator.

A Merchant Acquirer is a business entity that during 2007-2023 had an agreement with Discover to facilitate Discover credit card transactions and was characterized by Discover’s rules and regulations as an “Acquirer.”

To receive a settlement payment as a Merchant Acquirer, you must do both of the following:

1. You must submit additional information, called your “Merchant Acquirer Information,” to the Settlement Administrator by November 12, 2025.
   • The Settlement Administrator will provide all identified Merchant Acquirers a letter that includes a recommended data layout for the required Merchant Acquirer Information component fields and options for how this information may be securely submitted to the Settlement Administrator. You can also view this information at https://www.DiscoverMerchantSettlement.com/DataInfo.
   • If you would like to receive another copy of this letter, please let us know.
2. You must also Submit a Claim. Please be aware, the Court-approved deadline to file claims passed on May 18, 2026. We cannot guarantee that late claims will be considered.

A Payment Intermediary is a business entity (or portion of that entity’s business) that during the Relevant Period processed a Discover Credit Card Transaction on behalf of a Downstream Entity, but is neither a Merchant Acquirer nor an End Merchant. That means that your business (or a portion of your business) processed Discover credit card transactions on behalf of other businesses, but you were not classified in Discover’s records as an “Acquirer” and you processed the credit card transactions on behalf of other businesses or people that sold goods or services directly to consumers.

• Must be submitted online or postmarked by May 18, 2026
• Must include “Subject: Payment Intermediary Status”
• Must include the legal name of your organization including any divisions or subsidiaries that are wholly owned or operated by you and any of your predecessors, including any firms that were acquired, that accepted, acquired, or processed Discover Credit Card Transactions between 2007-2023
• Must include an explanation of why you believe your organization is not a Payment Intermediary.

A Payment Intermediary is a business entity that during 2007-2023 processed Discover credit card transactions on behalf of another business, but that is neither an End Merchant nor a Merchant Acquirer. That means that your business (or a portion of your business) processed Discover credit card transactions on behalf of other businesses, but you were not classified in Discover’s records as an “Acquirer” and you processed the credit card transactions on behalf of other businesses or people that sold goods or services directly to consumers.

To receive a settlement payment as a Payment Intermediary, you must do both of the following:

1. You must submit additional information, called your “Payment Intermediary Information,” to the Settlement Administrator by February 25, 2026.
   • The Settlement Administrator will provide all identified Payment Intermediaries a letter that includes a recommended data layout for the required Payment Intermediary Information component fields and options for how this information may be securely submitted to the Settlement Administrator. You can also view this information at https://www.DiscoverMerchantSettlement.com/DataInfo.
   • If you would like to receive another copy of this letter, please let us know.
2. You must also submit a claim , postmarked or submitted online at www.DiscoverMerchantSettlement.com, by May 18, 2026.

To submit additional information, and any necessary supporting documentation, called your “Payment Intermediary Information,” to the Settlement Administrator by February 25, 2026, review the instructions included in your notice package or view them online at https://www.DiscoverMerchantSettlement.com/DataInfo.

If, after reading the descriptions in the Long Form Notice, which can be downloaded from www.DiscoverMerchantSettlement.com in the Documents tab, you think you may be a different type of Settlement Class Member than indicated in the notice you received, you should file a claim as early as possible and/or follow the instructions provided in your claim information package. The Settlement Administrator will then notify you if additional action is required.

In certain limited circumstances, a single entity may be multiple Settlement Class Member types. For example, a single entity could be a Payment Intermediary for one time period or as to certain portions of its business and an End Merchant for another time period or other portions of its business. If your legal entity is multiple Settlement Class Member types, you must fulfill the claim requirements for each respective Settlement Class Member type in order to complete your claim and receive all payments you may be eligible for under the settlement.

The Court has appointed the following attorneys and law firms to represent the Settlement Class. Together, these lawyers are called “Settlement Class Counsel”. Their names and addresses are:

1. Roger N. Heller, Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein LLP, 275 Battery Street, 29th Floor San Francisco, CA 94111;
2. Catherine Pratsinakis, Dilworth Paxson LLP, 1650 Market Street, Ste. 1200, Philadelphia, PA 19103-7391; and,
3. Taras Kick, The Kick Law Firm, APC, 815 Moraga Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90049.

You do not have to pay Settlement Class Counsel out of your pocket for their time or expenses incurred in this case. Instead, Settlement Class Counsel will ask the Court for an award of their fees and expenses.

Under the terms of the settlement, any amounts awarded by the Court to Settlement Class Counsel and Settlement Class Representatives will be paid by Discover separate from (in other words, in addition to) settlement payments paid to Settlement Class Members. This means that payments approved by the Court to Settlement Class Counsel and Settlement Class Representatives will not affect the amount of any Settlement Class Member’s payment.

No. Any payments approved by the Court to Settlement Class Counsel and Settlement Class Representatives will not affect the amount of any Settlement Class Member’s payment.

You do not need to hire your own lawyer because the Court has appointed Settlement Class Counsel to represent you and the other members of the Settlement Class. However, you have the right to hire your own lawyer. If you want your own lawyer separate from Settlement Class Counsel, you will have to pay that lawyer.

If you do nothing, and if the settlement is finally approved, you will be legally bound by all of the orders that the Court issues and judgments the Court makes in these lawsuits, give up any right you may have to sue Discover for claims raised in these lawsuits and related to the Misclassified Card Transactions against Discover and its affiliates, and you will not receive any settlement payment unless you are an Unmanaged Active Direct End Merchant.

If you do not exclude yourself and the Court approves the settlement, you will give up any right you may have to sue Discover about the claims in these lawsuits or related to the Misclassified Card Transactions.

The deadline to exclude yourself was March 25, 2026 and has now passed.

The deadline to opt out was March 25, 2026 and has now passed.

The deadline to object or comment was March 25, 2026 and has now passed.

Any Settlement Class Member who does not timely and validly submit an objection waives the right to object or be heard at the Final Approval Hearing.

If you are a member of the Settlement Class and do not exclude yourself in a timely and valid manner, and the settlement is approved and becomes final, you will release the claims in the three lawsuits and claims related to the Misclassified Card Transactions against Discover and its affiliates, as detailed in the Settlement Agreement. The Settlement Agreement, available at www.DiscoverMerchantSettlement.com, describes the claims you are releasing (giving up) by staying in the Settlement Class (called “Released Claims”).

We cannot complete the claim form for you, but you can contact us with specific questions during the filing process by calling 1-888-655-3176 (Toll-Free) 9:00 A.M. to 8:00 P.M. ET Monday through Friday, excluding federal holidays. You may also find your question answered in the Web Claim Filing Guide available on the website.

The Court will hold a Final Approval Hearing, currently scheduled for 9:30 a.m. Central Time on May 20, 2026, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Courtroom 2319, 219 South Dearborn Street, Chicago, IL 60604. The hearing may be moved to a different date or time without additional notice or may be held remotely or telephonically. Please check www.DiscoverMerchantSettlement.com for updates or changes.

You do not have to come to the Final Approval Hearing. Settlement Class Counsel will represent Settlement Class Members and answer questions the Court may have, but you are welcome to come at your own expense. If you submit an objection, you do not have to come to the Court to talk about it. So long as you submitted your written objection on time, the Court will consider it. You may also pay your own lawyer to attend, but it is not necessary.

You may ask the Court for permission to speak at the Final Approval Hearing. You cannot speak at the hearing if you exclude yourself from the Settlement Class.

More information can be found at www.DiscoverMerchantSettlement.com.

• Important case deadlines,
• links to case documents including the Settlement Agreement,
• the complaints in these lawsuits, and other information about the lawsuits and the settlement.

Please call our Call Center at 888-655-3176 so one of our agents can create an escalation for you.

As the Settlement Administrator, we are a neutral third party and cannot offer tax advice. You may want to check with your tax preparer or accountant for any requirements.

Both TIN (Tax Identification Number) and EIN (Employer Identification Number) refer to a nine-digit number issued by the IRS to identify an entity, either a business entity such as an LLC or Corporation, or entities like a Trust or an Estate of a Deceased Individual. Social Security Numbers are a different nine-digit number issued by the Social Security Administration. Some small business owners use their SSN as the TIN/EIN.

You are welcome to submit a Form W-9, as it may be necessary, depending on your settlement payment amount. You are able to add a Form W-9 to your claim; you will receive a prompt to do so after you submit your claim. As the Settlement Administrator, we are a neutral third party and cannot offer tax advice. You may want to check with your tax preparer or accountant for any requirements.

An EIN or FEIN is a Federal Employer Identification Number, which is the official name of the taxpayer ID number issued by the Internal Revenue Service to an entity doing business in the US.

If you filed a web claim form:

• Representative Name
• Representative Title
• Phone Number

1. Tax ID (EIN, TIN, or SSN)
2. Correspondent’s position in the company
3. Previous and/or incorrect mailing address
4. New Address
5. Correspondent’s signature.

If you are not the intended recipient, please securely destroy the mail you received or mark it “return to sender” and place it back in your mailbox.

Changes in business due to sale can be complicated and could affect eligibility to receive a settlement payment. The contract of sale of the business would dictate whether you retained your rights and privileges to participate in litigation concerning the time you owned the business. If you have questions about your specific eligibility, you will need to consult the contract of sale between you and the new owner. Consulting an attorney, including potentially the attorney who helped with the sale of your business, may also be helpful.

Changes in business due to bankruptcy can be complicated and could affect eligibility to receive a settlement payment. If you think you meet the class definition, you are encouraged to file a claim. If there is a dispute over whether or not you are entitled to settlement proceeds, additional information may be requested by the Settlement Administrator.

Simply closing a business should not impact eligibility for Class Members. If you think you meet the class definition, you are encouraged to file a claim. If there is a dispute over whether or not you are entitled to settlement proceeds, additional information, may be requested by the Settlement Administrator.

Changes in business due to a deceased owner can be complicated and could affect eligibility to receive a settlement payment.

• the Death Certificate; or
• any estate document showing that you have authority to act on behalf of the estate of the deceased.

Currently, the value of your claim is not known as the Settlement Administrator is still receiving information from Merchant Acquirers and Payment Intermediaries necessary to complete allocations and make a determination of each eligible Settlement Class Member’s settlement payment.

The Settlement provides for a minimum payment of $10, subject to an aggregate Settlement Base Payment cap of $50 million. In other words, if an eligible Settlement Class Member’s settlement payment is less than $10, that payment will be increased to a minimum of $10, subject to the cap. Please refer to the Long Form Notice and Settlement Agreement for more information about Settlement Base Payments and the Settlement Base Payment Maximum.

The Court has appointed Epiq as the Settlement Administrator to assist you with the filing of your claim form, or any other actions required, at no cost to you. You may file your claim at no cost at www.DiscoverMerchantSettlement.com. No-cost assistance is available during the claims-filing period from the Settlement Administrator Epiq Class Actions and Settlement Counsel.

The Court-approved deadline to file claims passed on May 18, 2026. We cannot guarantee that late claims will be considered.