What Are the PCI Compliance Levels — and How Paytia Can Remove You From the Burden

PCI Levels

If your business takes card payments — whether over the phone, online, or in person — you’re required to comply with PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard). That part’s non-negotiable.

But what you’re responsible for within those standards depends on your PCI compliance level. While meeting these requirements can be complex and time-consuming, there’s good news: working with a Level 1 PCI DSS Service Provider like Paytia can significantly reduce or even eliminate your PCI scope.

Let’s break it all down.

💳 What Is PCI DSS, and Why Does It Matter?

PCI DSS is a global set of security standards created to ensure that all companies that accept, process, store, or transmit credit card information maintain a secure environment. It's enforced by the major card networks (Visa, Mastercard, etc.), and non-compliance can result in:

• Heavy fines

• Legal liabilities

• Breach of customer trust

• Even loss of payment processing privileges

📊 The Four PCI Compliance Levels for Merchants

Which level you fall into depends on how many card transactions you process each year.

🔐 Level 1: 6 Million+ Transactions Annually

• Must complete an annual Report on Compliance (ROC) by a Qualified Security Assessor (QSA)

• Requires quarterly ASV scans

• Must submit an Attestation of Compliance (AOC)

• Applies automatically if you've had a data breach — regardless of volume

🛒 Level 2: 1 to 6 Million Transactions

• Annual Self-Assessment Questionnaire (SAQ)

• Quarterly ASV scans

• AOC

🧾 Level 3: 20,000 to 1 Million E-commerce Transactions

• SAQ

• ASV scans

• AOC

📉 Level 4: Fewer than 20,000 E-commerce or Up to 1 Million Total Transactions

• SAQ

• ASV scans (if required by acquirer)

The lower the level, the fewer the requirements — but every business that handles cardholder data must be PCI compliant in some form.

🧰 What About Service Providers?

If you're a provider that handles card data on behalf of merchants — like a payment gateway, call center solution, or voice payment system — you're classified as a service provider, and your PCI levels are different:

Level	Who it Applies To	Requirements
Level 1	300,000+ transactions annually	Full ROC by QSA, ASV scans, AOC
Level 2	Fewer than 300,000 transactions	SAQ-D, ASV scans, AOC (if applicable)

✅ Enter Paytia: A Level 1 PCI DSS Certified Provider

Things get interesting here: Paytia is a fully certified Level 1 PCI DSS Service Provider.

What does that mean for you? Using Paytia’s platform to process card payments (especially over the phone) removes your business from PCI scope because you never see, handle, or store card data at all.

That means:

• ✅ No SAQ required

• ✅ No need for ASV scans

• ✅ No more worrying about compliance questionnaires

• ✅ No storing of card data in your systems or voice recordings

Instead, card data is securely captured by Paytia, processed through PCI-compliant channels, and never enters your network. You get peace of mind, and your customers get a safer payment experience.

🧠 How Paytia Helps You Stay Compliant

• Secure keypad entry for phone payments (DTMF masking)

• Real-time authorization without exposing your team to card data

• Seamless integration with telephony platforms like 3CX

• Hosted PCI infrastructure — no compliance burden on your business

Using Paytia means you're delegating the compliance risk to a certified expert, while still offering a secure and smooth payment experience to your customers.

🏁 Final Thoughts

PCI compliance is essential, but it doesn’t have to be your burden.

Instead of navigating complex standards, worrying about audits, and managing the risk yourself, you can partner with Paytia, a trusted Level 1 PCI DSS provider, to take care of it all for you.

Let Paytia carry the PCI burden so you can focus on what you do best: running your business.

Want to find out how much of your PCI responsibility Paytia can remove?[Book a demo or contact us today →]