Looking at payment network products/capabilities: 𝐌𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐈𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 (𝐌𝐈𝐓)

An MIT is initiated by the merchant without the cardholder actively participating at the time of authorization.

It must be clearly linked to a prior CIT, or a valid agreement that 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐲 allowed the merchant to store and reuse the payment credential.

Each payment network has introduced an MIT framework to improve data quality across the ecosystem and support issuer authorization decisions. In general, an MIT must:
➡️ be linked to an initial CIT
➡️ align with the cardholder consent terms specified in the agreement
➡️ comply with the regulations and authorization requirements set by the payment network.

Although MITs 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐠𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐲 𝐄𝐌𝐕𝐂𝐨, most payment networks have implemented similar MIT indicators as part of their frameworks, covering the following transaction types:
➡️ 𝐑𝐞𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 (𝐟𝐢𝐱𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐦𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭/𝐟𝐢𝐱𝐞𝐝 𝐟𝐫𝐞𝐪𝐮𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐲): Scheduled payments for a fixed amount and interval (e.g., memberships).
➡️ 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐎𝐫𝐝𝐞𝐫 (𝐯𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐚𝐦𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭/𝐟𝐢𝐱𝐞𝐝 𝐟𝐫𝐞𝐪𝐮𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐲): Regular payments with a variable amount (e.g., utility bills).
➡️ 𝐈𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭: A set number of payments as part of a purchase agreement (e.g., four equal payments for a TV).
➡️ 𝐔𝐧𝐬𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐝𝐮𝐥𝐞𝐝 𝐂𝐫𝐞𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐥-𝐨𝐧-𝐅𝐢𝐥𝐞: Ad-hoc charges triggered by specific events under a pre-existing agreement (e.g., mobile top-ups).
➡️ 𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐒𝐡𝐢𝐩𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭: Charges tied to the dispatch of goods in separate shipments.
➡️ 𝐃𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐲𝐞𝐝 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐠𝐞: Charges added after the initial transaction, typically for incidentals (e.g., minibar charges).
➡️ 𝐍𝐨-𝐒𝐡𝐨𝐰: Charges applied when a cardholder fails to cancel or appear for a guaranteed reservation.
➡️ 𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐮𝐛𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧: Retry of a previously declined authorization, where the decline reason allows a later attempt (e.g., insufficient funds).

𝐍𝐨𝐭𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝐄𝐮𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞, 𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐏𝐒𝐃2, subsequent Merchant-Initiated Transactions (MITs) are treated as out of scope for Strong Customer Authentication (SCA) if two key conditions are met:
➡️ The cardholder granted a mandate or agreement while “in session,” and SCA was applied at that time if the agreement was established through a remote channel typically during an initial authenticated CIT using 3-D Secure.
➡️ Each subsequent MIT is properly flagged in the authorization message as merchant-initiated, and linked back to the original transaction or mandate in accordance with payment network data requirements.

𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐢𝐳𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐌𝐈𝐓 𝐫𝐮𝐥𝐞𝐬 and indicators across networks enables merchants to code MITs consistently and correctly, helps issuers reduce false declines, minimizes unnecessary SCA prompts for cardholders, and facilitates value-added services such as Account Updater programs that keep stored credentials (e.g., PANs) up to date.