# Support
source: https://developer.mastercard.com/eligibility-api/documentation/support/index.md

## FAQ {#faq}

#### General {#general}

An API to check the benefits a cardholder may have and details associated with that card or BIN. A vendor can check if the cardholder is eligible for benefits. Issuers, Service Providers and Merchants are all potential consumers of this API. To test the Eligibility API in the Sandbox environment, you create a project, generate sandbox keys, and use the test data. Refer to the [Quick Start Guide](https://developer.mastercard.com/eligibility-api/documentation/tutorials-and-guides/guide-quickstart/index.md) for the full setup sequence and the [Testing](https://developer.mastercard.com/eligibility-api/documentation/testing/index.md) page for sample requests. This data can be used to retrieve products, product details, benefits, benefit details, issuer details, policy and coverage information that is assigned to a cardholder's full account number or to the card account's BIN/Product combination. The full card number which is used as the primary input parameter for the [`benefits/searches`](https://developer.mastercard.com/eligibility-api/documentation/api-reference/index.md#search-benefits), [`products/searches`](https://developer.mastercard.com/eligibility-api/documentation/api-reference/index.md#search-products), and [`/card-identifiers`](https://developer.mastercard.com/eligibility-api/documentation/api-reference/index.md#generate-a-card-number-identifier) operations in the API Reference. The date for which benefits are to be determined. Defaults to the current date if not provided. Date format is YYYY-MM-DD. The typical data format used in the Benefits Eligibility APIs is JSON Benefits Eligibility is a global product and is available for all markets. For pricing information on Benefits Eligibility API, contact your Mastercard representative/account manager or email the [Eligibility Support team](mailto:eligibilitysupport@mastercard.com). An access token is digital, not a physical item. It is a message sent from an api to a vendor and stored temporarily by the vendor. The vendor includes a copy of the token in subsequent requests sent to the server to confirm the vendor's authentication status. See the [Access Token Use Cases](https://developer.mastercard.com/eligibility-api/documentation/usecases/index.md#access-token-use-cases) and the [`widgets/access-tokens`](https://developer.mastercard.com/eligibility-api/documentation/api-reference/index.md#generate-an-access-token) operation in the API Reference for the request and response contract. A card identifier is a UUID (Universally Unique Identifier) associated to the card number. Generate one using the [`/card-identifiers`](https://developer.mastercard.com/eligibility-api/documentation/api-reference/index.md#generate-a-card-number-identifier) operation and the [Card Identifier Use Cases](https://developer.mastercard.com/eligibility-api/documentation/usecases/index.md#card-identifier-use-cases).

#### Onboarding {#onboarding}

To start a project using the Benefits Eligibility API, contact your Mastercard representative/account manager or email the [Eligibility Support team](mailto:eligibilitysupport@mastercard.com). To move from sandbox to production, you must first complete sandbox testing and validation. Once you are ready, contact your Mastercard representative/account manager or email the [Eligibility Support team](mailto:eligibilitysupport@mastercard.com). For additional details, refer to the [Onboarding Checklist](https://developer.mastercard.com/eligibility-api/documentation/tutorials-and-guides/onboarding-checklist/index.md).

#### Integration and Troubleshooting {#integration-and-troubleshooting}

The Benefits Eligibility APIs uses synthetic monitoring to continuously verify that the API is available and functioning as expected. This information is publicly available, allowing you to check uptime and review any recent issues. Check the [status page](https://developer.mastercard.com/api-status) to view this information. The API uses OAuth 1.0a for secure authentication. Customers can manage authentication keys in their Mastercard Developers Dashboard. Refer to the [API Basics](https://developer.mastercard.com/eligibility-api/documentation/api-basics/index.md) section for best practices. Yes, a [sandbox environment](https://developer.mastercard.com/eligibility-api/documentation/api-basics/index.md#environments) is available for testing. The sandbox environment contains representative but non-production data, which helps users understand the data structure, and API functionality, before moving to production. For more information, see [Testing](https://developer.mastercard.com/eligibility-api/documentation/testing/index.md).   
**Common causes**

* Your consumer key does not match the one in your Mastercard Developers project.
* Your `.p12` signing key file password is incorrect or the file is corrupted.
* The OAuth timestamp is too far from the server time (must be within 5 minutes).
* The request body was modified after the OAuth signature was computed.

<br />

**Step-by-step solution**

1. Go to your [Mastercard Developers](https://developer.mastercard.com) project page and verify your consumer key.
2. Re-download your `.p12` keystore file and confirm the password is correct.
3. Ensure your system clock is synchronized.
4. If using a custom HTTP client, verify the OAuth signature is computed over the exact request body being sent.
5. Test with the [Postman Collection](https://developer.mastercard.com/eligibility-api/documentation/developer-tools/postman-collection/index.md) to isolate whether the issue is in your signing implementation.

See [Code and Formats](https://developer.mastercard.com/eligibility-api/documentation/code-and-formats/index.md) for more details.
Use \[\`benefits/searches\`\](/documentation/api-reference/#search-benefits) to confirm whether a cardholder is currently eligible for a benefit before you present it. See the \[Benefits Use Cases\](/documentation/usecases/#benefits-use-cases) for the workflow. Pass the card number (or a previously generated card identifier) and, optionally, an \`effectiveDate\` or \`serviceProviderCode\` to narrow the result. Use the widget-based model described in the \[Widget Integration\](/documentation/tutorials-and-guides/widget-tutorial/widget-integration/) guide. Generate an access token with \[\`widgets/access-tokens\`\](/documentation/api-reference/#generate-an-access-token), embed the Mastercard widget, and let the widget collect and tokenize the card number into a card identifier via \[\`/card-identifiers\`\](/documentation/api-reference/#generate-a-card-number-identifier) on your behalf. First try the verified sample values from \[Testing\](/documentation/testing/#sample-test-data): use the working card number \`5555555555554444\` for full-card requests or the known-good sandbox BIN \`512345\` for the no-benefits scenario. If a documented sample still fails with \`BENEFITINFO_VAL_010\`, contact [Eligibility Support](mailto:eligibilitysupport@mastercard.com) and include the exact request value and endpoint you tested. For \[\`benefits/searches\`\](/documentation/api-reference/#search-benefits) and \[\`products/searches\`\](/documentation/api-reference/#search-products), the service evaluates \`cardNumber\` first when both identifiers are present, so send \`cardNumber\` when you have it and use \`cardNumberId\` when you need to avoid passing raw card data. See \[Use Cases\](/documentation/usecases/#endpoint-map) for the endpoint-by-endpoint input mapping. Call \[\`/card-identifiers\`\](/documentation/api-reference/#generate-a-card-number-identifier) first with a valid sandbox card number to generate a \`cardNumberId\`, then pass that returned value into \[\`/cards/{card_number_id}/bundles\`\](/documentation/api-reference/#search-bundles-for-a-cardholder). The \[Testing\](/documentation/testing/#sample-test-data) page documents the working sandbox card number to use for this flow.

## Next Steps {#next-steps}

* Still integrating? Start with the [Quick Start Guide](https://developer.mastercard.com/eligibility-api/documentation/tutorials-and-guides/guide-quickstart/index.md) or the [Testing](https://developer.mastercard.com/eligibility-api/documentation/testing/index.md) guide.
* Looking for a specific error code? See [Code and Formats](https://developer.mastercard.com/eligibility-api/documentation/code-and-formats/index.md).
* Moving to production? Follow the [Onboarding Checklist](https://developer.mastercard.com/eligibility-api/documentation/tutorials-and-guides/onboarding-checklist/index.md).

## Get Help {#get-help}

### Contact us for technical support. {#contact-us-for-technical-support}