Surcharging

RBA Review Results: New Rules for Card Payments

The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has today, 31 March 2026, released its final report into merchant card costs. The Payments System Board has concluded that a significant package of reforms is necessary to promote competition and efficiency in the Australian payments system.

What was decided today?

Removal of Surcharging: Surcharging will be removed on all debit, prepaid, and credit cards on the designated eftpos, Mastercard, and Visa networks.
Lower Interchange Caps: The RBA will lower the caps on interchange fees paid by Australian businesses to help offset the removal of surcharge revenue.
Increased Transparency: New rules will increase transparency over the fees charged by card networks and payment service providers, making it easier for businesses to compare costs.
Implementation Date: Most of these changes, including the surcharging ban and domestic interchange reductions, will come into effect on 1 October 2026.

The ABA is reviewing the RBA’s Conclusions Paper in detail. Until 1 October 2026, the current surcharging guidelines (outlined below) remain in force.

Understanding the Current “Cost of Acceptance”

Reserve Bank of Australia’s Surcharging Standard

The RBA’s standard ensures that payment costs are transparent for everyone. When a business chooses to apply a surcharge, it must reflect the actual cost of processing that specific payment.

This helps businesses make informed decisions about which payments to accept, while giving consumers confidence they aren’t being overcharged. If a surcharge feels too high, customers can report it to the ACCC.

Current Surcharging Rules

Cost-Matching The surcharge cannot be more than what it costs the business to use that specific payment type (like debit or credit).

Direct Costs Only Fees can only cover the direct cost of the payment. Extra services, like point-of-sale software, cannot be added to a surcharge.

Proof of Cost Businesses must be able to prove the costs they used to calculate their surcharge if they are asked to do so.

Ban on excessive payment surcharges

How much it costs a business to process a payment depends on the size of the business, the technology used, and the payment method.

This ban on excessive payment surcharges applies to:

Visa
MasterCard
Eftpos

Generally the ban does not apply to other electronic payment methods. These include, but are not limited to:

Buy now pay later (BNPL)
PayPal
Diners Club
American Express
taxi fares, whatever the payment type

Costs that businesses can include

The Reserve Bank of Australia sets out the costs that businesses can include when determining their reasonable costs of accepting payment types.

Before introducing a payment surcharge, businesses should read the ACCC’s Payment surcharges guide and the Reserve Bank of Australia guidance material. Consumers may also wish to read these guides for further information about how excessive payment surcharges are calculated.

Businesses can charge a surcharge for paying by card, but the surcharge must not be more than what it costs the business to use that payment type.
If a business charges a payment surcharge, it must be able to prove the costs it is based on.
If there is no way for a consumer to pay without paying a surcharge, the business must include the surcharge in the displayed price.

ACCC on Surcharging

The Reserve Bank of Australia is commencing its Review into Retail Payments Regulation. This review will examine the costs merchants face when accepting card payments and the framework for surcharging.