EMV Chip

EMV chip transactions are the most secure card-present method in the Priority gateway. A chip card inserted into an EMV-capable reader returns encrypted TLV data, which your application submits to Priority's Checkout API for authorization. EMV reduces counterfeit fraud, enables liability shift, and typically qualifies for lower interchange than swipe or keyed entry.

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Who this is for — ISVs whose deployment captures EMV data from a reader — via a vendor SDK (PAX VTX-HC, Clover), a custom EMV-capable device, or an Ingenico Tetra integration — and submits it to Priority for authorization.

What Defines an EMV Transaction

The dynamic cryptogram produced by the chip is what differentiates EMV from a swiped magstripe — every chip read generates unique authentication data the issuer validates against.

When to Use EMV

For terminals or cards that can't run EMV, see Swiped Card or Card Present (Keyed).

Required Equipment

How to Submit an EMV Payment

Endpoint

POST /payment (Checkout API)

Authentication

Basic auth — Base64-encoded username:password in the Authorization header.

Authorization: Basic {base64(username:password)}
Content-Type: application/json

Request body

{
  "merchantId": "4xxx0",
  "tenderType": "Card",
  "amount": "0.01",
  "cardAccount": {
    "emvData": "Xym9TXlYqOusxG1JrdlDqThnzBVZHnTziDjptEdBsv0MasvWV8IOF75Ld0OlntfIxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx/...",
    "emvDataKsn": "8033xxxxxxx000011"
  }
}

Field reference

Optional: return the full response with echo=true

To receive the full payment object in the response (instead of issuing a follow-up GET), append echo=true as a URL parameter:

POST /payment?echo=true

Successful response

HTTP 201 Created with the payment object's status set to Approved when the transaction is authorized.

Extracting Data from the TLV Payload

EMV readers return data in TLV (Tag-Length-Value) format. From the payload:

[verify — confirm TLV tag conventions are universal across all PPS-injected readers used with Priority]

Where EMV Data Comes From — by Integration Path

The /payment submission is the same regardless of how the data was captured. Only the capture path differs.

Trade-Offs vs Other Entry Methods

Sandbox Testing

Best Practices

Where to Go Next