Surcharge fee
support
Get all the help you need understanding and applying the Mastercard, Visa and Interac surcharge fee.
What is a surcharge fee?
A surcharge is an additional fee that you add on to a transaction, to cover the cost of processing, when a consumer uses a credit card or an Interac card for payment. Visa and Mastercard have agreed to permit Canadian merchants to apply this additional fee since October 6, 2022. These fees are not allowed on Visa or Mastercard debit or prepaid cards. The fees must also be applied evenly to all similar cards, including those from other accepted payment brands. This fee must not be applied in addition to a convenience or service fee.
Apply the surcharge fee in three easy steps
1
Notify Chase
Fill out the intent to surcharge form here no less than 30 days before applying the fee.
2
Notify Mastercard
Fill out Mastercard's surcharge disclosure form here no less than 30 days before applying the fee.
3
Disclose the surcharge
Ensure you have followed all the disclosure requirements and other rules to follow.
Do I need to let Chase know if I plan on charging my customers this fee?
Yes, one of the requirements to be able to charge a surcharge fee is an advanced notice to the acquirer, Chase, of your intent no less than 30 days before you implement it. All you need to do is to click here and fill out our notification of intent to surcharge form.
The form also outlines the Visa, Mastercard and Interac surcharge requirements that you must adhere to, including client notification and receipts. After submitting the form, an auto response is displayed on the screen and no other notification will be sent to you.
Do I need to notify the Payment Networks if I’ve already told Chase?
Neither Visa nor Interac require any notification from you or Chase, however, you must notify Mastercard. Like Chase, this must be disclosed to Mastercard no less than 30 days before you implement the surcharge. To make it easy we have provided you a link on our notification of intent to surcharge form. You can also click here to be taken directly to Mastercard’s surcharge disclosure form. After submitting the form, an auto response is displayed on the screen and no other notification will be sent to you.
Do I need to disclose the surcharge fee to my customer?
Yes, it is a requirement that that the surcharge amount is disclosed clearly on the transaction receipt. This does not need to be the point of sale device receipt and can be from your store register or an equivalent alternative receipt as along as the breakdown of the surcharge is clearly disclosed.
Surcharge fee FAQ
Explore these FAQs to understand more about the surcharge fee
The surcharge fee is taken specifically to cover the processing cost of any transaction done using a credit card. A convenience fee, is a fee imposed on all like transactions regardless of the form of payment used. This could be, for example, a fee to cover shipping, to expedite a service or a fee charged for the convenience of remitting payment online. It is important to note that Visa rules do not permit merchants to assess a convenience fee. Therefore, if you are a Mastercard and a Visa acceptor, you are prohibited from assessing a convenience fee on either card type.
Yes, your surcharge fee may not exceed the merchant discount rate for the applicable card surcharged. There is also an absolute surcharge cap that is set at a maximum of 2.4% for credit cards, and a $0.25 cap for Interac debit cards.
Note: Surcharge is prohibited on e-commerce transactions processed with Interac debit cards.
Yes, you must disclose clearly and prominently, both at the point of entry into your place of business and at the point of sale, that a surcharge fee is charged. If you have an online commerce this disclosure needs to be displayed on your web page prior to checkout, allowing the customer to cancel the transaction before completion if desired. In a telephone order transaction, verbal notice needs to be provided to the cardholder, including clearly setting out the surcharge amount.
- The exact amount or percentage of the surcharge
- A statement that the surcharge is being assessed and is only applied to credit card transactions
- A statement that the surcharge amount does not exceed:
- The surcharge cap, currently at 2.4% for credit cards and $0.25 for Interac debit cards
- The average merchant discount rate that you pay for credit card acceptance
Yes, it is a requirement that that the surcharge amount is disclosed clearly on the transaction receipt. This does not need to be the point of sale device receipt and can be from your store register or an equivalent alternative receipt as along as the breakdown of the surcharge is clearly disclosed.
Yes, one of the requirements of applying a surcharge fee is that you will credit it back to the cardholder in the event of a refund of the purchase. For partial refunds, the surcharge must be credited on a pro-rated basis.
Yes, if your customer does not wish to pay the surcharge, then you cannot proceed with the transaction that includes the surcharge. The payment acceptance device should display a prompt for the customer to proceed with the surcharge and allow them to decline to proceed. Surcharging without cardholder’s consent may result in compliance violations with penalties including fines and/or account termination. Chase would not be responsible for any chargeback initiated by the cardholder.
No, any federal or provincial law or regulation that prohibits or restricts surcharging will take precedence over the Visa and Mastercard surcharge rules permitting surcharging.