Industry • MCC 5993
Vape & E-cigarettes — Shopify holds & Klarna bans
Banned globally by Shopify Payments. Klarna restricts heavily. Requires high-risk processor.
MCC code
5993
Risk tier
VERY-HIGH
Avg flag time
30–90 days
Recovery rate (ours)
95%
Vape & E-cigarettes is one of the most aggressively reviewed verticals on Shopify Payments and Klarna. Nicotine and vape products violate Shopify Payments AUP.
Most merchants in this category are flagged automatically — not by a human reviewer — based on MCC 5993 pattern matching plus product-keyword scans. Once the flag fires, you have a 48-hour window to submit the right documentation. Miss that window and the case escalates to maximum hold duration.
Unholdr has run reinstatement cases across Vape & E-cigarettes merchants from six countries. We know exactly which document combinations Shopify Merchant Trust and Klarna's Underwriting team accept for this MCC. 95% win rate on accepted cases. 100% refund if we don't deliver.
Frequently asked questions
Why does Shopify hold Vape & E-cigarettes merchants?
Nicotine and vape products violate Shopify Payments AUP.
Is Vape & E-cigarettes permanently banned by Klarna?
Not always. Klarna evaluates per merchant, not per category. We've reversed Vape & E-cigarettes bans in multiple markets.
Should I switch processors instead?
Switching alone doesn't recover the held funds. We help you do both: release the existing hold AND set up a stable backup processor.
We're the only firm specialized in Vape & E-cigarettes merchant recovery.
Banned globally by Shopify Payments. Klarna restricts heavily. Requires high-risk processor. We've handled this exact vertical 200+ times. Apply for review — 48-hour answer.
- 200+ merchants recovered
- 95% win rate on accepted cases
- 14–21 day average resolution
- 100% refund if we don't deliver