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Card Issuance

Unit offers a full suite of card solutions with features to help you scale your program and unlock revenue in the form of interchange. Cards are issued through our expanding network of bank partners.

Note

The figures below are a general guide. Actual card pricing, shipping, and order minimums depend on your program and design choices. Please reach out to your contact at Unit, who can walk you through what applies to you.

Card Construct​

  • Physical cards: Plastic or metal cards shipped directly to cardholders
  • Virtual cards: Instantly available to initiate spend, created via API
Note

Virtual cards are not the same as cards added to mobile wallets (for example, Apple Pay or Google Pay). Cards added to mobile wallets are tokenized physical or virtual cards, with a design akin to their physical counterpart.

Card Use Cases​

Unit supports physical and virtual card issuance across a range of client use cases:

  • Debit: Available in business and consumer variants
  • Prepaid: Not limited to, but includes support for FSA, HSA, and HRA use cases
  • Credit: Offered via Charge card or revolving line, available to businesses

Card Features​

  • Contactless: "Tap-to-pay" functionality embedded in card chips, powered by near-field communication (NFC) technology
  • Mobile Wallet: Tokenized card credentials living in a mobile wallet, available in Apple, Google, and Samsung mobile wallets
  • ATM access: Including optional surcharge-free access through the Allpoint network

Designing and Managing a Card Program​

Unit offers a full range of customization and design options for your card programs. Depending on the path and extent of card customization you take, you should expect separate costs and inventory management responsibilities as it relates to card stock.

Here's a view of the three paths you can opt into for designing your cards with Unit.

1. Logo Card: Unit's out-of-the-box, fastest-to-market card design option​

Logo card design

Best for optimizing for speed-to-market.

Design details — Premium, matte-black plastic cards featuring your logo in white on the top right corner of the front of the card.

Timeline — 2–3 weeks until cards in hand.

Cost and inventory — Our most cost-effective option. Unit manages all Logo card inventory with our vendor, CPI. You are only charged for cards you issue, on a per-card basis.

What Unit needs from you — A high-quality vector logo (.ai or .eps).

2. On-Demand Cards: For clients opting for more flexibility in card design​

On-demand card design

Best for brand color control without committing to a custom card program.

Design details — Standard PVC plastic cards with flexibility in color on the front. The back of the card remains white.

Timeline — Approximately 4-5 weeks until cards in hand.

Cost and inventory — Priced above the Logo card to account for added design flexibility. Unit manages all card inventory for On-demand cards with our vendor, CPI. You are only charged for cards you issue, on a per-card basis.

What Unit needs from you — The hex code of your chosen color and a high-quality vector logo.

3. Custom Cards: Optimized for breadth of design and customization​

Custom card design

Best for premium materials, or coming in with an existing design, when you can plan several months ahead.

Design details — Full card customization, including premium materials such as metal and hybrid options.

Timeline — Approximately 12 weeks until cards in hand, but varies based on design and material availability.

Cost and inventory — Cards are variable, but typically higher than the Logo and On-demand options. For custom cards, you will be set up with a CPI Dashboard login to track, order, and keep tabs on your card stock inventory. Unit does not manage card inventory for custom card designs. You are charged per batch card order.

What Unit needs from you — Existing design assets and a high-quality vector logo (.ai or .eps).

For more information on the available custom design options, please review our Custom Card & Collateral Design Guide. There you will find Visa brand specifications and the templates needed to complete your design.

Note

Your initial selection is not a long-term commitment. Clients may transition between design options as their program evolves. If speed to market is a priority, consider launching with a Logo card and moving to an On-demand or Custom design at a later stage, which allows you to begin issuing cards within a few weeks while a longer-lead design progresses through production in parallel. Your Unit contact can support you in planning the transition.

Card Carriers​

Regardless of your card design choice, Unit provides a standard card carrier in which cards are shipped by default. You also have the option to design your carrier, giving you fuller customization of design, colors, and marketing inserts for card carriers and envelopes. Timelines and cost vary for carrier customization.

Standard card carrier

Standard carrier

Provided by Unit with Logo and On-demand cards.

Custom card carrier

Custom carrier

Branded design, colors, and optional marketing inserts.

Card Creation & Delivery​

After a card is requested, it usually takes about four business days for the card to be produced and put in the mail. Here's what a typical order looks like:

  • Day 1. You request the card through the Unit API
  • Day 2. Your card printer receives the order
  • Day 3. The card is produced
  • Day 4. The card ships via USPS, or by express courier if you'd like it to arrive sooner

Timing can shift a little depending on order volume and the shipping method you choose, and delivery time to your cardholder depends on the shipping provider.

Card Activation & Setup​

  • Once the card is delivered, it must be activated prior to use. In most cases, PIN selection is also required
  • Card activation and PIN selection may be integrated into your app or web experience utilizing Unit's card-management APIs

Unlike physical cards, virtual cards are created in Active status and do not require activation. See Activation for more.

Card Security​

3D Secure​

Unit-issued cards support 3D Secure (3DS) authentication, an industry-standard security protocol that adds an extra layer of verification for online card transactions.

How it works:

  • 3DS authentication happens automatically at the network level when cardholders make online purchases at participating merchants
  • When strong authentication is required, cardholders are prompted to verify their identity (typically via SMS one-time passcode or biometric authentication through their banking app)
  • Once authenticated, the transaction is approved and liability shifts from the issuer to the merchant

Benefits:

  • Enhanced security: Reduces fraud by verifying the cardholder's identity before completing online purchases
  • Regulatory compliance: Meets Strong Customer Authentication (SCA) requirements in regions like the EEA and UK
  • Liability protection: Merchants that request 3DS authentication receive liability protection for authenticated transactions
  • No integration required: 3DS works automatically for your cardholders — no API configuration needed on your end

Cardholder experience:

When making an online purchase at a merchant that supports 3DS, cardholders will:

  1. Enter their card details at checkout
  2. Be redirected to an authentication screen when strong authentication is requested
  3. Verify their identity (via SMS code, app notification, or biometric authentication)
  4. Return to the merchant to complete the purchase

This authentication step typically adds only seconds to the checkout process while significantly reducing fraud risk.

Cards Billing​

Card fees are billed on a monthly basis and include a mix of the following, depending on your choice of card design/inventory management:

Universal Fees:

  • Fulfillment
  • Standard Shipping
  • Passthrough charges: special handling and expedited shipping (if applicable)

Logo/On-demand Only:

  • Issuance fees (per card rate)

Custom cards and other materials (e.g., inserts and carriers) have upfront manufacturing costs that are in addition to the fees listed above and are billed prior to the start of manufacturing. Program setup fees also apply for new or modified custom card packages.

Visa Signature​

Visa Signature Business is an optional premium tier available to Unit charge card customers. It sits above the standard Visa Business Credit product and suits programs whose end customers are established businesses with higher spend.

  • Cards feature the Visa Signature logo

  • Cardholders have access to special benefits that include rewards, insurance and other exclusive perks (check out Visa's program page for more information)

  • Unit's customers benefit from increased adoption and spending levels, and will earn higher rates of interchange (tier 2 and above)

Note: Please reach out to your contact at Unit for Visa Signature eligibility requirements.