Merchant of record
Stripe Managed Payments
Stripe’s merchant of record service for digital products
13%
of the world’s people live in the 36 countries where Stripe Managed Payments onboards local businesses.
Designed for
Businesses already on Stripe in a supported country that sell software, SaaS or digital content and want Stripe to handle global tax.
Limitations
Digital products only, Stripe Checkout or Payment Links only, sellers must be based in one of 37 listed locations, and customers in restricted countries (including China, Cuba, Iran, Kosovo, North Korea, Russia and Syria) cannot buy.
What it offers
Stripe (through Link) becomes merchant of record for digital products sold with Stripe Checkout, Payment Links or its mobile Checkout UI, handling sales tax, VAT and GST in 80+ countries, fraud, disputes and transaction-level customer support. Payouts go to the seller’s Stripe account as usual.
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Selling through Stripe Managed Payments
Digital products identified by eligible tax codes: software and SaaS, AI-as-a-service (eligible since 2 June 2026), video games, digital media (e-books, audio, video, images/artwork), online courses and training, and electronically supplied business and web services such as hosting. Not supported: physical goods, professional services (consulting, marketing, design, development, tech support), live in-person events, and anything with human intervention such as live 1-1 coaching. Must be sold directly, not through a platform or marketplace.
Business must be based in a supported location and pass an eligibility review considering business type and geography. Direct integrations only: no Connect platforms, Express accounts or platform-controlled accounts. Must keep a low dispute rate. Whether individuals (sole proprietors) qualify is not stated.
Payouts come from the seller’s own Stripe account (standard Stripe payouts); Managed Payments transactions appear in the normal balance and payout reconciliation reports.
Fees
3.5% per successful transaction, calculated on the full amount including tax, on top of standard Stripe processing fees. Subscriptions also pay Stripe Billing’s pay-as-you-go fee; some local payment methods (e.g. Klarna 2.99–5.99%) cost extra. Seen 2026-10-24.
Prices change and may depend on your volume and country. Check the provider’s pricing page before relying on them.
Deeper review
Platform and product capabilities
What you can build on Stripe Managed Payments: for other businesses, for your users, for consumers and with stablecoins.
Platform & marketplace
Run payments for other businesses: sign them up, take a cut, pay them out.
Managed Payments supports direct integrations only; Connect platforms, Express accounts and platform-controlled accounts are not supported.
Platform and marketplace (Connect) integrations are unsupported, and products must be sold directly, not through a marketplace.
medium confidence
Works with Stripe Checkout (Stripe-hosted or embedded page) and Payment Links, plus a mobile Checkout UI. Payment flows that use embeddable web components (Elements) or other advanced integrations are not supported.
Embedded finance for your users
Give your users financial products under your brand.
Consumer apps
Build for individuals, not just businesses, the way Bridge allows.
Stablecoins
Dollar-backed tokens as a payment and treasury rail.
AI agents
Build with AI tools, and let AI agents shop and pay.
Stripe’s official MCP server (public preview) works with the Stripe API and docs; no Managed Payments-specific tools are documented.
medium confidence
Stripe has a separate Agentic Commerce Suite, but no Managed Payments page says it works with agentic checkout.
low confidence
Not part of Managed Payments; Stripe’s separate issuing products were not assessed.
low confidence
Working with them
How easy it is to get started.
3.5% per successful transaction, calculated on the full amount including tax, on top of standard Stripe processing fees. Subscriptions also pay Stripe Billing’s pay-as-you-go fee; some local payment methods (e.g. Klarna 2.99–5.99%) cost ext
Where it onboards businesses
Available in 36 of the 170 countries we track.
Turned on inside a Stripe account; the business must be based in one of 37 listed locations (CA, US, 31 European countries including LI, and AU, HK, JP, SG) and pass Stripe’s eligibility review. Connect platforms and Express accounts are excluded. Stripe also owns Lemon Squeezy, which is still operating; its stated direction is moving its sellers to Managed Payments, and its signup now routes through a Stripe form.
High confidence: matches the provider’s published country list. Spotted a wrong country? Report it on that country’s page.
North America · 2
Europe · 30
Asia-Pacific · 4
Stripe Managed Payments: common questions
Which countries does Stripe Managed Payments support?
Stripe Managed Payments onboards businesses registered in 36 of the 170 countries we track.
Where is Stripe Managed Payments available, by region?
Countries where Stripe Managed Payments onboards businesses (fully or with limits), by region: North America 2 of 2, Latin America 0 of 26, Europe 30 of 43, Middle East 0 of 14, Africa 0 of 49, Asia-Pacific 4 of 36.
What does Stripe Managed Payments offer?
Accept payments: Stripe (through Link) becomes merchant of record for digital products sold with Stripe Checkout, Payment Links or its mobile Checkout UI, handling sales tax, VAT and GST in 80+ countries, fraud, disputes and transaction-level customer support. Payouts go to the seller’s Stripe account as usual.
Does Stripe Managed Payments support stablecoins?
No stablecoin products are listed for Stripe Managed Payments.
Can marketplaces and platforms use Stripe Managed Payments?
Sub-accounts for your users: No (Managed Payments supports direct integrations only; Connect platforms, Express accounts and platform-controlled accounts are not supported). Split payments and platform fees: No (Platform and marketplace (Connect) integrations are unsupported, and products must be sold directly, not through a marketplace). Embeddable UI: Partly (Works with Stripe Checkout (Stripe-hosted or embedded page) and Payment Links, plus a mobile Checkout UI. Payment flows that use embeddable web components (Elements) or other advanced integrations are not supported). Pay out to your users: Not confirmed (Not found on the official pages checked).
What are the alternatives to Stripe Managed Payments?
Other merchant of record providers we track: Paddle, Polar, Gumroad, FastSpring, Dodo Payments and Creem. Which one fits depends mostly on where your business is registered.
Sources
- Stripe docs: Managed Payments eligibility (supported business locations, products) ↗
- Stripe docs: Managed Payments overview ↗
- Stripe docs: How Managed Payments works ↗
- Stripe docs: Managed Payments changelog ↗
- Stripe API changelog: 2026-04-22.dahlia adds Managed Payments ↗
- Stripe blog: Everything we announced at Sessions 2026 (29 April 2026) ↗
- Stripe Support: Managed Payments pricing ↗
- Stripe docs: Tax compliance with Managed Payments ↗
- Stripe Support: Why is Sold through Link, LLC the legal entity on my invoice? ↗
- Stripe docs: Stripe MCP server ↗
- Lemon Squeezy blog: 2026 Update (Lemon Squeezy + Stripe Managed Payments) ↗