What Australia's card surcharge ban means for your shopping
From October 1, merchants can no longer charge extra fees on card payments; the price displayed must be what you pay.
Australia's card surcharge ban came into effect on October 1, ending the ability of shops and online sellers to add extra charges when you tap or swipe your card. The Reserve Bank updated the rules to allow Visa, Mastercard, Eftpos, PayPal, American Express and UnionPay to remove surcharges entirely.
Merchants must now show the final price upfront, so a five-dollar coffee costs five dollars at checkout. Behind the scenes, the rules also capped interchange fees (the charges banks pay each other per transaction) from 0.8 per cent to 0.3 per cent on credit cards.
Some older payment terminals may not yet reflect the changes, and the ACCC urges patience as businesses transition.
- October 1
- Ban effective date
- 0.3 per cent
- Credit card interchange ceiling
- 8 cents or 0.16 per cent
- Debit card interchange ceiling
- 6 providers
- Card networks affected
Why it mattersSurcharges previously hidden until checkout added up across the year; the ban makes shopping costs clearer and fairer for consumers.
AustraliaAustralian shoppers should see transparent pricing from today; some businesses may offset lost surcharge revenue by raising prices or offering cash discounts.
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