PayPal's Seller Protection Program

What’s eligible

If you sell a good or service to a buyer, you may be eligible for PayPal’s Seller Protection program, which terms and conditions are set forth herein and form part of the user agreement. When it applies, PayPal's Seller Protection program entitles you to retain the full purchase amount. PayPal determines, in its sole discretion, whether your claim is eligible for PayPal’s Seller Protection program based on the eligibility requirements, any information or documentation provided during the resolution process, or any other information PayPal deems relevant and appropriate under the circumstances. There is no limit on the number of payments eligible for PayPal's Seller Protection program. By accessing the Transaction Details page in your PayPal account you can identify transactions that may be eligible for protection under this program.

PayPal Seller Protection may apply when buyer(s) claim that:

They did not authorize, or benefit from, funds sent from their PayPal account (referred to as an “Unauthorised Transaction" claim), and the Unauthorised Transaction(s) occur in an environment hosted by PayPal.
They didn’t receive the item from you (referred to as an "Item Not Received" claim); provided, however, that Item Not Received claims that result from buyers filing chargeback claims with their issuers for card-funded transactions are not eligible for PayPal’s Seller Protection.

PayPal Seller Protection may also apply when a transaction is reversed because of a successful chargeback by a buyer because they did not authorise the card-funded payment or when a bank funded payment is reversed by the buyer’s bank.

This section describes PayPal Seller Protection as it applies to you, but you should also be familiar with the Impact of various PayPal Buyer Protection processes on sellers.

Basic requirements

To be eligible for PayPal Seller Protection, all of the following basic requirements must be met, as well as any applicable additional requirements:

The primary address for your PayPal account must be in Spain.
For Unauthorised Transaction claims, you must provide valid proof of shipment or proof of delivery that demonstrates that the item was shipped or provided to the buyer no later than two days after PayPal notified you of the dispute or reversal. For example, if PayPal notifies you of an Unauthorised Transaction claim on September 1, the valid proof of shipment must indicate that the item was shipped to the buyer no later than September 3 to be eligible for PayPal Seller Protection.
The item must be a physical, tangible good that can be shipped, except for items subject to the Intangible Goods Additional Requirements. Transactions involving items that you deliver in person in connection with payment made in your physical store, may also be eligible for PayPal Seller Protection so long as the buyer paid for the transaction in-person by using a PayPal QR code goods and services.
You must ship the item to the shipping address on the transaction details page in your PayPal account for the transaction. If you originally ship the item to the recipient's shipping address on the transaction details page but the item is later redirected to a different address, you will not be eligible for PayPal Seller Protection. We therefore recommend not using a shipping service that is arranged by the buyer, so that you will be able to provide valid proof of shipping and delivery.
- The shipping requirement does not apply to eligible transactions involving items that you deliver in person, provided, however, that you agree to provide us with alternative evidence of delivery, or such additional documentation or information relating to the transaction that we may request.
You must respond to PayPal's requests for documentation and other information in a timely manner as requested in our email correspondence with you or in our correspondence with you through the Resolution Center. If you do not respond to PayPal’s request for documentation and other information in the time requested, you may not be eligible for Seller Protection.
If the sale involves pre-ordered or made-to-order goods, you must ship within the timeframe you specified in the listing. Otherwise, it is recommended that you ship all items within 7 days after receipt of payment.
Provide proof of shipment or delivery.
In the case of Unauthorised Transaction claims, the payment must be marked "eligible" or "partially eligible", for PayPal's Seller Protection on the "Transaction Details" page.
You must accept a single payment from one PayPal Account for the purchase (partial payment and/or payment in installments are excluded).
Where you have integrated a PayPal Checkout product with your website or application, the following requirements apply to sellers with a PayPal business account, to maintain eligibility for the program and to ensure optimal management of potentially fraudulent transactions:

You need to make sure that information about the buyer's browser session and device information when making a PayPal transaction on your website is sent correctly to PayPal. In most cases, this information is sent to PayPal without the need for any action from you. On occasion, it may happen that this information is not being sent. This may happen because you have not integrated your Checkout product correctly or are using an enhancement that requires manual transmission of this data. When this happens, we will inform you and give you a 60-day notice to fix the issue. If the issue is not fixed within this timeframe, we may remove you your eligibility for Seller Protection for unauthorized transactions.
Additional integration requirements may apply to sellers using a PayPal business account to perform transactions associated with a business model that classifies as high-risk as further described in the PayPal User Agreement. Such transactions involve the sale of goods or services in a high-risk category, or other facts known to us typically resulting in an increased number of chargebacks, other claims or disputes or to be often involved in fraud or illegal activity. We put these requirements in place to help make sure that we can continue to meet our security and risk management standards. PayPal will inform you of those requirements in advance and you will be provided with a reasonable timeframe to make any changes that are necessary. If you do not make the changes within this timeframe, we may remove your eligibility for Seller Protection for unauthorized transactions.

PayPal determines whether your claim is eligible for the Seller Protection program. PayPal will make a decision, in its sole discretion, based on the eligibility requirements, any information or documentation provided during the resolution process or any other information PayPal deems relevant and appropriate under the circumstances.

Intangible Goods additional requirements

For the sale of intangible goods and services to be eligible for PayPal Seller Protection, the sale must meet the basic requirements and the following additional requirements:

In the case of Unauthorised Transaction claims, PayPal has marked the intangible good transaction as "eligible" on the "Transaction Details" page or otherwise provided notice to you of eligibility in writing.
Delivered the item and provide Proof of delivery for Intangible Goods.

Establishing proof of delivery or proof of shipment

Proof of shipment

Proof of delivery

Online or physical documentation from a shipping company that includes:

An online and verifiable tracking number
Date of shipment
An address for the recipient that matches the shipping address on the Transaction Details page, or
An address for the recipient showing at least the city/state, city/country, or zip/postal code (or international equivalent).

Online or physical documentation from a shipping company that includes:

An online and verifiable tracking number
Date of delivery and ‘delivered’ status
An address for the recipient that matches the shipping address on the Transaction Details page
An address for the recipient showing at least the city/state, city/country, or zip/postal code (or international equivalent).

IMPORTANT: Your choice of carrier and shipment options with that carrier can have a big impact on your ability to meet the proof of delivery requirements. Please ensure, especially when shipping goods internationally, that your carrier can provide ‘delivered’ status at the correct address, or your Seller Protection claim may be denied.

Intangible Goods

The following is required as proof of delivery for intangible goods:

For intangible or digital goods, proof of shipment or delivery means compelling evidence to show the item was delivered or the purchase order was fulfilled. Compelling evidence could include a system of record showing the date the item was sent and that it was either:

Electronically sent to the recipient, including the recipient’s address (email, IP, etc.), where applicable; or
Received of accessed by the recipient

QR Code Transactions

The following is required as proof of shipment or proof of delivery:

For QR code transactions you may be required to provide us with alternative evidence of delivery, or such additional documentation or information to the transaction.

Ineligible items and transactions

The following items or transactions are not eligible for the PayPal Seller Protection program if:

Real estate, including residential property.
Vehicles, including but not limited to motor vehicles, motorcycles, recreational vehicles, aircraft and boats, expect for personally portable light vehicles used for recreational purposes like bicycles and wheeled hoverboards.
Businesses (buying or investing in a business).
Industrial machinery used in manufacturing.
Payments equivalent to cash, including stored value items such as gift cards and pre-paid cards.
Payments made in respect of gold (whether in physical form or in exchange-traded form).
Financial products or investments of any kind.

Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) with a transaction amount of:

$10,000.01 USD or above (or equivalent value in local currency as calculated at the time of the transaction);
$10,000.00 USD or below (or equivalent value in local currency as calculated at the time of the transaction), unless the buyer claims it was an Unauthorised Transaction and the transaction meets all other eligibility requirements.

Gambling, gaming, and/or any other activities with an entry fee and a prize.
Donations, including payments received as crowdfunding or crowdlending.
Payments to a state-run body (except for state-owned enterprises), a government agency, or to third-party collecting payment on behalf of a state-run body or government agency.
Payments to any bill payment service.
Item where the buyer claims (either with us or their card issuer) that the item you sent isn't what was ordered (referred to as a “Significantly Not as Described” claim).
Item Not Received claims filed by your buyer directly with their card issuer.
Physical, tangible items delivered in person, including in connection with a payment made in your physical store, unless the buyer paid for the transaction in person using PayPal’s goods and services QR code.
Anything PayPal determines, in its sole discretion, is prohibited by this user agreement or the PayPal Acceptable Use Policy, even if the transaction is initially marked as "eligible" or "partially eligible" on the "Transaction Details" page.
Payments made using PayPal Payouts (formerly Mass Pay).
Personal payments including a payment sent using PayPal's friend and family functionality.
Payments are ineligible for the Seller Protection program if they are not processed through a buyer's PayPal account, including PayPal guest checkout payments and standard credit and debit card payments, when the seller's PayPal business account is registered in the following countries – Singapore, China, Hong Kong, Australia, Italy, France, the Netherlands, Spain, Ireland, Poland, Sweden, Bulgaria, Austria, Portugal, Belgium, Norway, Greece, Denmark, Cyprus, Lithuania, Czechia, Estonia, Finland, Romania, Slovenia, Hungary, Slovakia, Malta, Latvia and Luxembourg. PayPal guest checkout payments and standard credit and debit card payments are eligible for Seller Protection program when processed through PayPal business accounts registered in all other countries.
Items sent after PayPal advised you not to release the item.
Travel tickets sold by a travel carrier where (1) the buyer claims (either with us or their financial institution) that it was an Unauthorised Transaction and (2) such claim was filed more than 24 hours before the travel date.