RBA Confirmed: Card surcharges will be banned from 1 October 2026 — check you're on the right rate →
From 1 October 2026, when you can no longer surcharge eftpos, Mastercard or Visa payments, your merchant rate on those cards stops being something you pass on and becomes a direct cost. The good news is twofold: preparing is straightforward, and the RBA is also cutting interchange fees, so your underlying cost of acceptance may fall at the same time — particularly for small businesses.
This is a practical checklist, not legal advice. It covers understanding what you pay today, fixing your surcharge settings before the start date, and comparing your rate so you go in on the sharpest terms available. For the official rules and timing, always refer to the RBA at rba.gov.au.
Pull your last few merchant statements and work out your blended rate: the total fees you paid divided by your total card turnover. This single percentage is what will sit directly with you on eftpos, Mastercard and Visa once surcharging is removed. Note any fixed monthly, terminal or minimum fees too, as they form part of your real cost of acceptance.
Keep an eye on this figure through late 2026. Because the RBA is lowering domestic interchange caps from 1 October 2026, the cost component built into your rate may come down — but only your statements will tell you whether your provider passes that through. Clear, comparable pricing is exactly what the reforms are designed to encourage.
If your terminals or online checkout currently surcharge, identify where and how, because surcharging on eftpos, Mastercard and Visa must be switched off by 1 October 2026. Map every payment point — countertop, mobile and online — so nothing is missed. You may still apply a surcharge on American Express and PayPal, provided it does not exceed your cost of acceptance for those methods.
Avoid the tempting workaround: you cannot rebrand a card surcharge as an "admin," "service" or "handling" fee to keep charging it. That is prohibited under the Australian Consumer Law. Plan instead for how removing the surcharge affects your pricing — some businesses absorb the cost, others revisit prices so margins hold. Knowing your blended rate from Step 1 tells you exactly how much is at stake.
This is the highest-value step. Because your merchant fee becomes a direct cost, even a modest reduction flows straight to your bottom line every month. The reforms will also require card networks and large providers to publish their fees, making comparison easier than ever — so there is real benefit in getting ahead of it rather than scrambling near the deadline.
Use our savings calculator to estimate the difference a lower rate could make, and get a free comparison if you want the exact numbers for your business. Switching is usually low-disruption: in most cases the terminal and setup stay the same, and only the rate changes.
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