Payment help
Paying for Open CPD from South Africa
Open CPD is used by training providers across South Africa, and payment is taken in rand. If a card is declined, it is nearly always something the bank can clear in a minute.
You can pay in rand
South African visitors see rand prices automatically on the pricing page, and payment is taken in rand. There is no currency conversion for you to work out and no separate South African price list to hunt for.
Prices are held in one place and shown live, which is why this page does not repeat them. Whatever the pricing page says today is what you will be charged.
If your card is declined
A declined card is almost never a problem with your account, and almost always something the bank has done for a reason it has not told you about. These are the usual four.
This is the most common cause by a distance. Many South African banks block card-not-present or cross-border transactions by default, and the block is silent from your side. Most banking apps let you switch online and international payments on yourself, often under a card settings or limits section. Turning it on and trying again resolves most cases.
Even with online payments enabled, a limit lower than the amount you are paying will decline it. Limits are usually adjustable in the banking app, and can be raised temporarily and put back afterwards.
Payments are verified through your bank, usually with a one-time code or an approval in the banking app. If that prompt does not arrive, or arrives after the page has timed out, the payment fails even though the card is fine. Have your phone to hand and the banking app open before you start, then try again.
Some prepaid, virtual and certain business cards are not accepted for recurring payments. If you are subscribing rather than making a one-off purchase, a standard debit or credit card is the safer choice.
Before you try again
Working through these in order clears the great majority of failed payments.
- Enable online and international payments in your banking app.
- Check the transaction limit is above the amount you are paying.
- Have your phone ready for the verification prompt, and approve it promptly.
- Use a standard debit or credit card rather than a prepaid or virtual one.
- If the card was declined more than twice, wait a short while before retrying, since repeated attempts can trigger a further block.
If it still will not go through
Get in touch and tell us what happened, including whether you saw a specific message from your bank. Please do not send us card numbers or any part of them: we do not need them, and no legitimate request for payment details will ever come from us by email.
We can look at whether the attempt reached us at all, which itself narrows the cause considerably, and we can talk through the alternatives if your bank will not budge.
If a renewal fails, the usual reason is a card that has expired or been reissued with a new expiry date or security code. Updating the card in your account restores the subscription without you needing to sign up again.
If a renewal is going to be a problem in a particular month, tell us before it lapses rather than afterwards. It is far easier to keep an account running than to restore one.
Frequently asked questions
- Can I pay for Open CPD in rand?
- Yes. South African visitors see rand prices automatically and are charged in rand. There is nothing to convert and no separate South African price list.
- Why was my South African card declined?
- Most often because the bank blocks online or international transactions by default, or a transaction limit is set below the amount. Both can usually be changed in your banking app in a minute.
- What is the verification step my bank asks for?
- It is 3D Secure, a one-time code or an in-app approval that confirms the payment is really you. If the prompt is missed or arrives late the payment fails, so have your banking app open before you start.
- Can I use a prepaid or virtual card?
- For a one-off purchase it may work, but prepaid and virtual cards are frequently rejected for recurring payments. A standard debit or credit card is more reliable for a subscription.
- My renewal failed and my subscription lapsed. What now?
- Update the card details in your account, which is usually all that is needed after a card has expired or been reissued. If that does not restore it, contact support and we will sort it out.
Payment still not going through?
Tell us what happened and we will work out where it stopped.