EMV Implementation for Issuers: 7 Decisions You Must Make Before Issuing Your First Chip Card

3. Do we use the same BINs/Prefixes for our chip cards that we used for our magnetic stripe cards, or do we use new BINs/Prefixes? What are the advantages and disadvantages?

   You already have BINs/Prefixes that you use for your mag stripe cards. Your card issuing organization must decide to either issue chip cards using those existing BINs/Prefixes or using a new (never before used) BIN/Prefix. Of course, if you use a new BIN, you must be sure to register that BIN with the appropriate network(s). The new BIN could be either an extended BIN (sharing the first ‘n’ digits with the existing ‘short’ BINs owned by the issuer) or a completely new short BIN.

   There are advantages and disadvantages to each approach, and your organization should examine both options carefully. For example, using a new extended BIN can enable you to establish host parameters for chip card authorization by BIN, if desired. Similarly, if transaction routing is based on BIN, you can use the extended BIN to identify and route chip transactions to a different endpoint than magnetic stripe transactions. You can also use BINs to distinguish cards by product, service, function, and so forth. Even if you choose to use your existing BINs to issue your new chip cards, you could still choose to use new PANs for chip cards.

4. How will we handle PIN issuance? Do we automatically issue new PINs?

   In addition to issuing new cards, your organization may also need to reissue PINs. If your institution wishes to allow cardholders to use the PIN from their magnetic stripe cards for their new chip cards, your host system must have a record of (or be able to determine) the existing clear PIN. The clear PIN is then provided to the chip card manufacturer as part of card personalization.

   Unfortunately, many organizations do not have a record of the PIN. Instead, functions such as PIN verification rely on a PIN offset (which, depending on the type of card, may also be known as the PVV, or PIN Verification Value). The PIN offset can be stored on the magnetic stripe card. Conversely, the chip card has the encrypted PIN stored on the chip. Storing the encrypted PIN within the chip facilitates certain PIN-related functions for chip cards (for example, offline PIN verification at a chip-enabled POS device). Consequently, the track 2 data in the magnetic stripe on a chip card does not contain a PIN offset. (In fact, the Track 2 data within the chip is referred to as the “Track 2 equivalent” [Tag 57] and is slightly different than the Track 2 on a magnetic stripe card.)

5. Will we support the PIN change function on our chip cards?

   You can optionally allow your chip cards to perform a PIN change at chip-enabled ATMs. Alternatively, you might choose to offer PIN changes exclusively at your branch offices via a device in the branch that could send a PIN change script to the chip card. Note, however, that if you choose to support PIN changes at the ATM or branch, your cards and your host system (or a third party, such as a network or switch) will need to contain the keys and programming to support these features.

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