# Paystack international payments not enabled: what can I do? **The problem** "A customer in London tried to buy my course and the card failed. My Paystack dashboard says I don't have international payments, and my request was turned down." If Paystack international payments are not enabled, foreign cards fail with "Merchant is not enabled for international transactions" and you must request access from the Preferences tab of your Paystack Dashboard; Paystack says it replies within 48 working hours. Paystack refuses international payments for some business types and asks digital product sellers for full compliance documents and a website. If you sell digital products, software or fixed-price service packages and still get a no, AgentaOS can be the legal seller of each foreign card sale and pay you out in Nigeria, Kenya or Ghana. Reviewed by [Panche Isajeski](https://agentaos.ai/about), founder of AgentaOS, 19+ years in payments, featured on Indie Hackers. Checked 7 November 2026 against Paystack's own help pages and our country data. General information, not financial, tax or legal advice. [Check your country](https://agentaos.ai/countries) · [Get started free](https://app.agentaos.ai/?src=answer-paystack-international-payments-not-enabled) **On this page:** What does the error mean? · How do I request international payments? · Why was my request rejected? · Which route fits me? · How do I sell abroad without Paystack? · Steps · Checklist · Questions --- ### What does "Merchant is not enabled for international transactions" mean? It means your Paystack business cannot take foreign cards yet. Paystack's [System errors](https://support.paystack.com/en/articles/2129794) page says: "This means that your business cannot receive international transactions via Paystack, and your customer is trying to pay you using an international card." Its fix: "You'll need to make a request for your business to be enabled for International Payments." ### How do I request international payments on Paystack? From your Dashboard. Paystack's [Enabling international payments for your business](https://support.paystack.com/en/articles/2130690) says that when you create a business, Paystack asks if you need international payments: "If you choose yes and fulfil all the compliance requirements for your business type, international payments will be granted when your business is activated." If not, "you will have to submit an international payments request from the Preferences tab in your Dashboard settings", after your business is activated. Click "Request international payments"; Paystack says "you should get a response from us within 48 working hours of your submission." Foreign card money settles in your local currency by default. USD is an option only in Kenya and Nigeria: "To get your payouts for USD transactions as a Nigeria-based business, you'll need a Zenith Bank USD domiciliary account. In Kenya, you'll need a USD bank account domiciled in a Kenyan bank." Ghana is listed with GHS only. ### Why was my Paystack international payments request rejected? Paystack's [International payment eligibility](https://support.paystack.com/en/articles/2127682) page says: "we do not enable international transactions for certain types of businesses, and some may require additional scrutiny before approval." The ineligible list includes crypto, betting, lending, real estate, investment, data resellers, electronics sellers such as "mobile phone sellers, television sellers", car dealers and crowdfunding. Some types can pass with more paperwork. For "Sale of e-books and other digital products", Paystack wants "Complete compliance documentation" and a "Valid website or social media page showing where the ebooks or digital products are sold". In Ghana there is a second rule. Paystack's [Ineligible businesses](https://support.paystack.com/en/articles/2127042) page says that, following Visa and Mastercard guidelines, some high-risk Ghana businesses get "mobile money and USSD (coming soon) payment channels by default, and your customers can't pay you with their card or Apple Pay." Paystack publishes no other reasons. Before you look elsewhere, check that your names match across ID and bank ([Nigeria requirements](https://support.paystack.com/en/articles/2123970): "If these details do not match, we cannot activate your account") and that your website shows the product. Then ask support@paystack.com what is missing. ### Which route fits me? Paystack's [Starter Business](https://support.paystack.com/en/articles/2128898) is for sellers "yet to register their businesses", with a collection limit (NGN 8,000,000 or USD 5,000 in Nigeria). A Registered Business has "No limit". | | Paystack Starter Business | Paystack Registered Business | AgentaOS (merchant of record) | |---|---|---|---| | Who is the seller to the buyer | You | You | AgentaOS | | Company needed | No | Yes | No, individuals accepted | | Foreign cards | Only after Paystack approves your request | Only after Paystack approves your request | Yes, for allowed products | | Local NGN, KES or GHS payments, mobile money | Yes | Yes | No, cards and bank in EUR or USD | | What you can sell | Most businesses, minus Paystack's lists | Most businesses, minus Paystack's lists | Digital products, software, fixed-price service packages | | Payout to | Your local account, or USD (Nigeria, Kenya) | Your local account, or USD (Nigeria, Kenya) | Your bank in EUR or USD; USD only in Nigeria | | VAT and invoices for foreign buyers | You | You | AgentaOS | Paystack column from Paystack's help pages, read 7 November 2026. AgentaOS column from our [facts](https://agentaos.ai/facts) and [supported countries docs](https://docs.agentaos.ai/mor/supported-countries.md). ### How do I accept international payments without Paystack? Use a merchant of record for foreign sales. The buyer abroad pays by card on our checkout, and AgentaOS is the legal seller: it charges the buyer's VAT or sales tax, issues the invoice, and handles refunds and chargebacks ([facts](https://agentaos.ai/facts)). You do not need a company. It costs 4.5% + €0.50 per card sale, or 6.0% + €0.50 for cards issued outside the EEA, with no monthly fee ([facts](https://agentaos.ai/facts)). US and UK cards are non-EEA. Payouts run twice a month, on the 1st and the 15th ([payouts docs](https://docs.agentaos.ai/payouts/overview.md)). Where we pay out, per our [supported countries docs](https://docs.agentaos.ai/mor/supported-countries.md): - **Nigeria:** USD only, by Swift, to a USD domiciliary account at your bank. [Nigeria guide](https://agentaos.ai/countries/nigeria) - **Kenya:** EUR or USD, by Swift, to a foreign currency account. [Kenya guide](https://agentaos.ai/countries/kenya) - **Ghana:** on our supported list, EUR or USD by Swift. We have no Ghana guide yet. **What you can sell.** E-books, courses, templates, software and SaaS. Services only as fixed-price packages: the same deliverable, price and delivery time for every buyer, approved per account ([Terms, section 21](https://agentaos.ai/terms)). Not allowed: physical goods, work scoped per client, donations, unlicensed financial services, gambling and crypto trading ([Terms, section 5](https://agentaos.ai/terms)). ### How do I set it up, step by step? 1. **Keep Paystack for local buyers.** Your NGN, KES or GHS customers keep paying the way they do now. 2. **Check your country.** Find it on our [country list](https://agentaos.ai/countries). In Nigeria, open a USD domiciliary account at your bank. 3. **Check your product fits.** Digital product, software or a fixed-price package. Nothing shipped, nothing quoted per client. 4. **Create the product.** In AgentaOS, add a name, a price in EUR or USD and the type **One-time**. Under **After payment**, click **+ Redirect buyers after payment** and set your thank-you page as the **Success URL** ([payment links docs](https://docs.agentaos.ai/payments/payment-links.md)). 5. **Show two buttons.** "Pay in naira" (Paystack) for local buyers, "Pay from abroad" (AgentaOS link) for everyone else. 6. **Test with a foreign card.** Pay once from a phone, check you land on the thank-you page, then refund yourself from the dashboard. 7. **Get paid and declare it.** New sales clear for 14 days, then go out on the next 1st or 15th once you have at least €50 or $50 available ([payouts docs](https://docs.agentaos.ai/payouts/overview.md)). Declare the income at home; ask a local accountant. ### Checklist: before you sell to foreign buyers - ✓ Paystack activation complete and international request sent - ✓ Names match on your ID, bank account and Paystack profile - ✓ A website or social page that shows what you sell - ✓ Your country on our country list (USD account in Nigeria) - ✓ Only digital products, software or fixed-price packages - ✓ One-time product with the Success URL set, tested with a foreign card - ✓ Your accountant told about income from abroad ### When is AgentaOS the wrong choice? If most of your buyers are at home and pay in naira, shillings or cedis, or by mobile money, Paystack is the better fit: we do not take local currency or mobile money. If you sell physical goods, electronics or anything shipped, we cannot take it. If your work is custom and quoted per client, such as one-off web design, we cannot take it either. New accounts start with 15% of each sale held for 120 days ([Terms, section 9](https://agentaos.ai/terms)). --- ### Related questions **Why is Paystack international payments not enabled on my account?** Paystack grants international payments at activation only if you chose yes and met the compliance rules for your business type. Otherwise you request it from the Preferences tab in Dashboard settings after activation. Paystack says it replies within 48 working hours. **What does "Merchant is not enabled for international transactions" mean?** Paystack says it means your business cannot receive international transactions and your customer is paying with an international card. Paystack's fix is to request international payments for your business from the Preferences tab. **Why was my Paystack international payments request rejected?** Paystack does not enable international payments for some business types, such as crypto, betting, lending and electronics sellers. E-book and digital product sellers need complete compliance documents and a website or social page showing where they sell. Paystack publishes no other reasons. **Can I get USD payouts from Paystack?** Only Nigeria- and Kenya-based businesses, says Paystack. In Nigeria you need a Zenith Bank USD domiciliary account; in Kenya, a USD account at a Kenyan bank. Otherwise international payments settle in your local currency. **How do I accept international card payments in Nigeria without Paystack?** Use a merchant of record for digital products, software or fixed-price packages. AgentaOS is the legal seller, takes the foreign card, handles VAT and invoices, and pays you in USD to your bank in Nigeria on the 1st and 15th. --- **Keep reading:** [Stripe isn't available in my country](https://agentaos.ai/answers/stripe-not-available-in-my-country) · [PayPal won't let me receive money](https://agentaos.ai/answers/paypal-cannot-receive-money-in-my-country) · [Which merchant of record pays out to my country?](https://agentaos.ai/answers/which-merchant-of-record-pays-out-to-my-country) · [Do I need a company to sell online?](https://agentaos.ai/answers/do-i-need-a-company-to-sell-online) · [Take card payments for services](https://agentaos.ai/answers/take-card-payments-for-services) · [How to sell digital products online](https://agentaos.ai/answers/how-to-sell-digital-products-online) · [EU VAT when you sell from outside the EU](https://agentaos.ai/answers/eu-vat-selling-from-outside-the-eu) · [Nigeria](https://agentaos.ai/countries/nigeria) · [Kenya](https://agentaos.ai/countries/kenya) · [Countries we pay out to](https://agentaos.ai/countries) **Sources:** [Paystack, Enabling international payments for your business](https://support.paystack.com/en/articles/2130690) · [Paystack, International payment eligibility](https://support.paystack.com/en/articles/2127682) · [Paystack, System errors](https://support.paystack.com/en/articles/2129794) · [Paystack, Ineligible businesses](https://support.paystack.com/en/articles/2127042) · [Paystack, Paystack business types](https://support.paystack.com/en/articles/2128898) · [Paystack, Compliance requirements for Nigeria](https://support.paystack.com/en/articles/2123970) · [AgentaOS facts](https://agentaos.ai/facts) · [AgentaOS supported countries](https://docs.agentaos.ai/mor/supported-countries.md) · [AgentaOS payouts](https://docs.agentaos.ai/payouts/overview.md) · [AgentaOS payment links](https://docs.agentaos.ai/payments/payment-links.md) · [AgentaOS Terms](https://agentaos.ai/terms) ---