This one is for sellers and merchants, not cardholders. The date that loses you the case is almost never the network's headline window — it is your processor's shorter deadline, buried in your dashboard. Enter the notice date, the network and your processor, and this calculator gives you the date that actually binds, with the network date beside it so you can see exactly how much time the processor took.
By Muhammad Umer, founder of Chargeback Clock. Windows checked October 28, 2026 — processor windows from each processor's own published pages; network windows are published general windows (network rulebooks are not public) to confirm with your acquirer. The date printed on your own case notice beats every date on this page: if it differs, use it.
When must you actually respond?
Enter your notice date, network and processor below and the calculator gives you the binding date — the earliest safe date among your processor window and the network window. Everything is counted in your browser and never sent anywhere. This calculator asks for no card numbers, account numbers or merchant IDs — never enter those into any checker.
The date ON the notice (or in your processor dashboard), not the date you opened the email. Lag between filing and notice already ate part of your window.
If a case already escalated past representment, enter the pre-arbitration notice date and the calculator dates that stage too. Without it, the ladder is shown as windows only — each stage starts on its own notice.
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The two clocks
Why the processor date beats the network date
The network deadline runs to the acquirer, not to you. Your processor holds part of it for review, formatting and forwarding, so the date in your dashboard is days — sometimes weeks — earlier than the network headline. A Visa merchant who plans to day 30 on Stripe has already missed it: Stripe's published window is usually 7–21 days, and the Dashboard date is the real one. The same compression runs everywhere: Adyen gives its merchants 9 or 18 days on a 30-day Visa window, 40 days on a 45-day Mastercard window, and 14 days on a 20-day Amex window.
Stripe 7–21 · Shopify 7–21 · Square 7 · Adyen 25 (inside the 20–45 range — plan to 20)
One exception proves the rule. On Discover through Adyen, the processor figure (25 days) is later than the network's short end (20 days), so a merchant who plans to day 25 can still lose if their reason code carries the 20-day window. This calculator therefore binds to the earliest safe date among the two clocks, never to the later one — and it says so on the result.
What to do the day a notice arrives
Do these four things the same day, in this order: first, write down the deadline printed on the case itself and set an internal target two days earlier; second, read the reason code, because the evidence that wins is the evidence that answers that code and nothing else; third, assign one owner to the case so it cannot sit unanswered while it is forwarded between support, finance and operations; fourth, gather the order record, delivery proof and customer messages before drafting anything, because a complete packet filed early beats a perfect packet filed late. If the deadline cannot be met, contact the processor or acquirer before it passes, not after.
Want the full story, with the sources?
The companion article works through every network and processor window, why the sources disagree on Discover and on the arbitration ladder, what a missed deadline actually costs, and the day-one checklist — each claim tied to its source. Read it here: Merchant response deadlines explained: the date that actually binds.
The date that binds is the earliest safe date among your processor's window and the network's window — and above both, the date printed on your own case notice. Stripe and Shopify Payments allow 7–21 days, Square 7 days, Adyen 9 or 18 days for Visa, 40 for Mastercard, 14 for American Express and 25 for Discover, against network windows of 30 days (Visa), 45 days (Mastercard), 20 days (American Express) and 20–45 days (Discover).
Because the network deadline runs to the acquirer, and the processor holds part of it for review, formatting and forwarding. The network's 30 or 45 days is the acquirer's deadline, not yours: your processor's dashboard date is the one you must meet.
The dispute is decided by default in the cardholder's favour with no evidence review, and the chargeback stands regardless of how strong your evidence was. A refund issued after a chargeback has started does not stop the process.
Stripe publishes only a range — usually 7–21 days depending on the card network — and no per-network split. This calculator therefore does not invent a Stripe-Visa or Stripe-Mastercard figure: it plans to the short end (7 days) and tells you to use the date in your Stripe Dashboard.
Sources (checked October 28, 2026): Stripe Documentation, "How disputes work" — "usually 7-21 days, depending on the card network" to respond after a chargeback is created, issuer usually 60-75 days to decide, full lifecycle 2-3 months; Shopify Help Center, "Managing chargebacks in the Shopify admin" and "Resolving a chargeback or inquiry" — due date varies from 7 to 21 days after filing, shown per case in the store's timezone (11:59 PM if no time shown), bank review up to 75 days after submission; Square Support, "Manage payment disputes" and "Prepare documents to challenge disputes" — seven days from the initial notification email to submit information, exact deadline on the form, bank decision up to 90 days; Adyen Docs, "Dispute timeframes" table and Visa chargebacks guide — chargeback response from NoC date: Visa 9 days (US/Canada local, disputes opened from July 21, 2025) or 18 days (elsewhere), Mastercard 40, American Express 14, Discover 25, with pre-arbitration accept/decline Visa Collaboration 28 days and Mastercard 8-28 days by reason code; Chargeflow, "Chargeback Calendar" (updated October 6, 2026) — Visa 30 / pre-arbitration 30 / arbitration filing 10 days, Mastercard 45 / pre-arbitration 30 / arbitration filing 10 days, American Express 20 days per phase with no separate pre-arbitration or arbitration, Discover 20-45 by reason code with pre-arbitration mirroring the initial timing and arbitration filing roughly 10-15 days. Network rulebooks are not public; network figures are published general windows and can vary by reason code — confirm with your acquirer.
General information only — not legal or financial advice. Deadlines vary by network, reason code, processor and merchant agreement, and the date on your own case notice governs. This calculator applies the published windows to the date you entered. Never enter a card number, account number or merchant ID into any checker — no genuine deadline check needs them.
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