Payment provider for (potentially) prohibited products in the UK - Shopify Payments/3rd party

Payments + Shipping & Fulfilment
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Topic summary

A UK-based automotive paint supplier is uncertain whether aerosols, solvents, and utility knives violate Shopify Payments’ terms of service. These products may fall under prohibited categories like “flammable materials” or “regulated products.”

Shopify Support’s Response:

  • Confirmed these items are prohibited from the Shop app
  • Could not definitively answer whether Shopify Payments allows them
  • Suggested the merchant review terms themselves

Three Options Considered:

  1. Use Shopify Payments for everything (risky—account could be suspended if flagged)
  2. Switch entirely to third-party payment provider (avoids ToS issues but incurs 1-2% transaction fees)
  3. Use checkout routing apps to split payments between Shopify Payments (non-restricted items) and third-party providers (restricted items)

Recommendations from Community:

  • Stripe mentioned as common third-party gateway, though one user noted vape products are also restricted there
  • Alternative suggestions: 2Checkout, Authorize.net
  • WallidPay proposed as UK-specific bank-to-bank solution that bypasses card networks entirely, avoiding product restrictions with lower fees and no contracts

Status: Discussion remains open with no definitive resolution on Shopify Payments compliance.

Summarized with AI on October 28. AI used: claude-sonnet-4-5-20250929.
1

Hi all,

My company sells automotive paints and supplies, including items such as aerosols, utility knives and solvents. While I understand that I’m able to list these items on Shopify, I may not be able to receive payment for these items through Shopify Payments. Looking through the Shopify ToS for the UK, these items may fall into the following category:

Regulated or illegal products or services: Cannabis dispensaries and related businesses; sale of tobacco, e-cigarettes, and e-liquid; online pharmacies; age restricted goods or services; weapons and munitions; gunpowder and other explosives; fireworks and related goods; toxic, flammable, and radioactive materials; products and services with varying legal status on a regional basis; goods or services, the sale of which is illegal under applicable law in the jurisdictions to which your business is targeted or directed

I’ve reached out to the Shopify support team, and received the following response:

As promised, I was now able to check this with our team and they have advised that Aerosols and solvents are indeed prohibited in Shop. As per the team, you can be able to sell these products in your store using a third party payment method. However, it is not currently possible to activate Shop app with these products.

So I understand that I’m not allowed to receive payments for these items through Shop. But nothing about Shopify payments. Again, I asked if they we’re prohibited in Shopify Payments, and received the following:

The team was not able to provide exact details about if the product is prohibited as they have mentioned that the merchant should be the one reviewing this themselves.

Again, I asked explicitly if I can receive payment for these items through Shopify Payments, with Shop Pay disabled, and received the following:

I understand that you are concerns about the issue of you using Shopify payments and selling automotive parts on your store, checking on the help document of Prohibited businesses and products it does not show any products stating Aerosol however on the shop app eligibility or Prohibited products on Shop, there are a lot of products that are prohibited, so do make sure you review as well the prohibited product types on the shop but as per checking on the Shopify Payments the information below only states that there are the only products that are prohibited…

So the Shopify support team cannot answer my question, which has concerned me slightly. I’ve found numerous Shopify stores selling aerosols and other items through Shopify Payments, however I believe that doing so may well be in breach of their ToS. I believe I have the following options:

  1. Use Shopify Payments for my entire store, and hope that I’m not in breach and don’t get asked to close the store/remove the prohibited items
  2. Use a 3rd party payment provider for all items on the store - not ideal as I’d have to pay the 1-2% Shopify transaction fee for all payments
  3. Use and app like BeSure checkout rules, to accept Shopify Payments for all non-prohibited items, and a 3rd party provider for potentially prohibited items - I assume this wouldn’t be in breach of the ToS?

I’d be grateful for any other suggestions, or validation on which of the options above would be most suitable for my store. Any suggestions for 3rd party payment providers don’t lock you into a contract would be welcomed as well!

Thanks :slightly_smiling_face:

2

Hi @CAPLtd !

Based on experience, most merchants that sell prohibited products or high-risk products are using third party payment gateway and the most famous third-party gateway that they are using is Stripe.

3

I am also having issues. I tried to use stripe for my restricted products, however those are also restricted on stripe. my restricted products are vape products. I am struggling to find any that do allow.

4

Hi @bil3 !

May I know where your store is located? It depends on the payment gateways available for each country. How about trying 2checkout or authorize.net if available?

5

Hi,

I am based in England. How do these two work. thanks

6

Hi there,

You’ve done a great job navigating what is admittedly a very grey area when it comes to Shopify Payments and regulated products. The confusion around aerosols and solvents is understandable — Shopify’s own documentation and support team can sometimes offer limited clarity, especially when it comes to nuanced categories like automotive supplies.

You’re absolutely right to be cautious. While some merchants may get by using Shopify Payments for items like aerosols, doing so could still be considered a violation of the Shopify Payments Terms of Service, especially under the “regulated or flammable materials” clause. If flagged, this could result in your payments being frozen or your account suspended — not ideal once you’re operational.

On Your Options:- Option 1 (using Shopify Payments for everything) carries risk if your products are later flagged.

  • Option 2 (switching fully to a third-party gateway) avoids ToS issues but comes with additional transaction fees.

  • Option 3 (using something like BeSure to route payments) is technically viable, but it still depends on whether Shopify would accept that split — and enforcement can be inconsistent.

A Practical Alternative:

You may want to consider using a bank-to-bank payment solution like WallidPay [https://apps.shopify.com/wallidpay\](https://apps.shopify.com/wallidpay\) . It’s a UK-based payment provider that enables direct account-to-account payments, bypassing the card networks entirely.

Here’s why it might suit your business:

  • Compliant with Shopify – as a third-party gateway, it avoids Shopify Payments restrictions

  • No card network limitations – less likely to flag products like solvents or aerosols

  • Lower processing fees – compared to traditional card gateways

  • Real-time payments – with high acceptance and fewer chargebacks

  • No long-term contracts – flexible and startup-friendly

This gives you a secure and compliant path forward without needing to restructure your store or take unnecessary risks with your payments setup.

Hope this helps clarify your options — and best of luck with your store launch!