How much can I surcharge?
You may surcharge customers (who pay by card) up to your cost of acceptance. This information can be found on your monthly statements.
I have multiple stores at different locations, what can I surcharge?
Your cost of acceptance is calculated per merchant number. If you own a franchise or have multiple stores, you can average the surcharge rate across your stores per card type, so long as all stores are under the same legal entity.
Please note that you cannot average the cost of acceptance per individual merchant number and surcharge using the average of all card types.
What should I surcharge if i’m a new merchant?
Monthly Cost of Acceptance (COA) information will be available on your first merchant statement. For the period where COA is not available, you can choose not to surcharge or surcharge at a rate that is deemed reasonable* for the month.
*A reasonable surcharge is a rate no higher than what it costs you to process a transaction.
What happens if my card surcharge(s) does not reflect my Cost of Acceptance?
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) is empowered to enforce compliance with this Surcharging Standard. The ACCC may take action against any merchant whose card surcharge exceeds its cost of acceptance.
Can I impose one surcharge on all payment types?
Yes, you must set the surcharge at the level of the lowest cost of acceptance across all card types.
Please note: Surcharging rules does not allow you to surcharge an average of the percentages shown under the Avg. Cost Per Transaction (%) column.
What happens if I continue to surcharge at my own rates?
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has been given powers to enforce compliance. There are regulatory consequences if you surcharge above your cost of acceptance. For more information visit the Payments System Regulation page at www.rba.gov.au
