How to Get Shopify Payments Approved for Your Store
How to Get Shopify Payments Approved for Your Store
Bottom line: Shopify Payments is available in 23 countries and rejected for stores selling prohibited products or operating in ineligible countries. Approval happens automatically when your store meets the eligibility criteria. The challenge is knowing those criteria before you build your store.
Countries Where Shopify Payments Is Available (2025)
United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, Ireland, New Zealand, Singapore, Hong Kong SAR, Japan, Spain, Italy, France, Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Austria, Switzerland, Czech Republic, Portugal.
If your country is not on this list, you cannot use Shopify Payments. Use Stripe, PayPal, or a local payment gateway instead.
Products That Are Prohibited on Shopify Payments
Shopify Payments will not process transactions for:
Absolutely prohibited:
Requires additional verification:
How to Get Approved
Step 1: Create Your Shopify Store
Go to shopify.com and start a trial. You don't need to be on a paid plan to set up Shopify Payments, but you must be on a paid plan to accept live payments.
Step 2: Go to Settings → Payments → Shopify Payments
Click "Complete Account Setup." This initiates the activation process.
Step 3: Provide Business Information
Step 4: Verify Your Identity
Shopify Payments requires identity verification for all account holders. Provide:
Verification typically takes 1–3 business days.
Why Shopify Payments Gets Suspended Post-Approval
Shopify Payments suspensions are triggered by:
How Shopify Payments Compares to Third-Party Processors
| Feature | Shopify Payments | Stripe | PayPal |
|---|---|---|---|
| Transaction fee (Basic plan) | 2.9% + 30¢ | 2.9% + 30¢ | 3.49% + 49¢ |
| Additional Shopify fee | None | 2% | 2% |
| Dispute resolution | Built-in | Separate | Separate |
| Payout schedule | 2–3 business days | 2–7 days | Immediate to balance |
| Multi-currency | Yes | Yes | Yes |
The main advantage of Shopify Payments is eliminating the 0.5–2% additional transaction fee Shopify charges for third-party payment processors.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use Shopify Payments and PayPal simultaneously?
Yes. Shopify Payments handles credit/debit card transactions; PayPal handles customers who prefer to pay with their PayPal balance. Many stores run both.
What happens if Shopify Payments is suspended?
You must use a third-party processor (Stripe, PayPal) and will pay Shopify's additional transaction fee until the issue is resolved. Respond to Shopify's documentation request immediately through the admin panel.
Does Shopify Payments work for digital products?
Yes. Digital downloads, software licenses, and online courses are all eligible. Prohibited digital products are the same as physical: illegal content, adult material, etc.
Is Shopify Payments available for dropshipping stores?
Yes, with the same eligibility requirements as any other store. Dropshipping stores with unusually high chargeback rates due to long shipping times are suspension risks.