Can My Business Use Stripe for Payments in 2024?

Do you need to accept online payments and wondering if your business can use Stripe?

While Stripe is the best payment processor available for most businesses, certain products and services, as well as high-risk jurisdictions, are prohibited. These restrictions exist to maintain the integrity of the financial system and prevent fraudulent activity.

In this article, we’ll discuss the types of businesses Stripe doesn’t work with so you can decide if it’s right for you.

Using Stripe to Process Online Payments

Stripe is our favorite payment processor based on several reasons, including its user-friendliness, simple pricing structure, PCI compliance, anti-fraud tools, and seamless integrations with hundreds of different platforms and products.

For most businesses and organizations that need to easily accept online payments, Stripe is ideal. It doesn’t require users to be developers or web experts to collect payments via 10+ payment methods without a lot of effort.

You can use it to set up one-time or subscription payment plans, create branded payment pages, automate communication with customers about their purchases, process refunds, write custom fraud protection rules, and more.

If you’re using WP Simple Pay, the #1 Stripe payments plugin for WordPress, you don’t have to take any further steps to become PCI-compliant. You can also create on-site Stripe payment forms in minutes directly from the WordPress dashboard.

The plugin allows you to easily set up your location’s currency settings so that you can collect payments legally from anywhere in the world.

To learn more, see the following guide on how to globalize your eCommerce business using WP Simple Pay and Stripe.

Stripe Restricted Businesses

We mentioned before that Stripe fully supports most businesses wanting to accept payments. However, a few types of businesses, products, and industries can’t use Stripe’s services. It’s important to familiarize yourself with these restrictions to ensure that your business stays compliant with Stripe’s rules.

Prohibited Business Categories

Although your business may be completely legal, Stripe is a financial infrastructure platform that must meet certain requirements, as well as those from financial partners that prevent it from working with certain industries.

As of June 2024, Stripe has updated its Restricted Business List to include the following categories. This list is not exhaustive but gives you a general idea of what types of businesses Stripe does not support.

• Adult Content
• Content Creation Platforms
• Financial Services
• Gambling Businesses
• Marijuana Businesses
• Pharmaceutical Businesses
• Telemedicine Businesses
• Travel Reservation Services
• Vapes and E-Cigarettes

Jurisdiction-Specific Prohibited Businesses

While Stripe is an excellent processor for global businesses of all sizes, certain business types are prohibited in your jurisdiction.

For example, if your business is based in the United States, the following businesses are prohibited:

• Extended warranties and subscriptions over one year
• Mortgage consulting
• Pseudo-pharmaceuticals or nutraceuticals focused on weight loss
• Shipping brokers and freight forwarders, without prior authorization from Stripe

To see a full list of prohibited businesses, click here.

If you’re unsure whether your business falls under the restricted business umbrella, you can contact Stripe for more information. In some cases, prior written approval is granted.

There you have it! We hope this article helped you learn more about the types of businesses Stripe doesn’t work with.

If you liked this article, you might also want to check out the following guides:

• Stripe: 8 Reasons Why It’s the Best Payment Processor
• 9 Unique Facts About Stripe You Didn’t Already Know
• The Complete Guide to Setting Up a Stripe Checkout Page in WordPress
• How to Use AI to Block Fraudulent Payments in Stripe
• 4 Best Stripe Dashboard Feature Updates in 2024

What are you waiting for? Get started with WP Simple Pay today!

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