Card surcharge ban from 1 October 2026 and the RBA's new interchange caps

From 1 October 2026, Australian businesses can no longer add a surcharge when you pay with a debit, prepaid or credit card on the eftpos, Mastercard or Visa networks. The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) published this final decision on 31 March 2026 at the end of its review of merchant card payment costs and surcharging. At the same time the RBA lowered the caps on interchange fees, the fees paid between banks on each card transaction: the cap for domestic consumer credit cards falls from 0.8% to 0.3% of the transaction value, and for domestic debit and prepaid cards from 10 cents (0.2%) to 8 cents (0.16%). A new 1.0% cap on foreign-issued cards follows on 1 April 2027. For cardholders, the change removes surcharges at the checkout but may also reduce the money that funds rewards points.

This guide is part of the comparison overview. It summarises the RBA's published conclusions; check the RBA website for the full text and any later updates.

What a surcharge was, and what changes

Before the decision, Australian merchants could pass on the cost of accepting a card as a surcharge, as long as it did not exceed their cost of acceptance. Many cafés, taxis, airlines and online sellers added 1% or more. The RBA concluded that the costs of card payments should instead be built into prices, alongside lower and more transparent fees for businesses.

Source: RBA, Review of Merchant Card Payment Costs and Surcharging, Conclusions Paper (March 2026).

Which payments are covered

According to the RBA's FAQs on the decision:

• The removal covers card payment surcharges on the eftpos, Mastercard and Visa networks, whether you tap, insert, pay online or use a card stored in a mobile wallet.
• It does not cover other charges such as weekend or public holiday surcharges, or booking and service fees, which are separate pricing decisions by the business.
• The RBA lists American Express as not permitting surcharging on its credit cards from 1 October 2026 and notes changes announced by PayPal and UnionPay. Check the RBA's current FAQ for the status of other networks and payment methods.
• The RBA does not currently regulate surcharges on non-card payment methods; for those, the ACCC's pricing rules apply.

Businesses can still offer discounts for a particular payment method, choose which payment methods they accept (subject to any cash acceptance requirements), and build payment costs into their general prices.

What to do if you are surcharged after 1 October 2026

1. Ask the business to remove it, referring to the RBA decision.
2. Check your receipt for the card network (eftpos, Mastercard or Visa). The card networks enforce their no-surcharge rules, not the RBA, and you can report the business to the network shown on your receipt.
3. If the price display was misleading, you can contact your state or territory consumer protection agency or the ACCC.
4. Keep the receipt and note the date, amount and business name.

A surcharge is not normally something your own bank can refund, but your issuer can tell you how to report it to the card network.

How this could affect rewards and cashback

Interchange is paid by the merchant's bank to the cardholder's bank. For credit cards, it has been one of the revenues that card issuers use to fund rewards programs. The RBA's FAQs note that some financial institutions have announced changes to credit card rewards, pricing structures and benefits, and describe these as commercial decisions for each institution.

What this means in practice:

• Earn rates or point values may fall on some cards. Recalculate a card's net value whenever your issuer notifies changes; see annual fee versus rewards value.
• Annual fees could change in either direction as issuers restructure products.
• Removing surcharges helps every cardholder a little at checkout, which partly offsets lower rewards for people who used to pay surcharges.
• Cards on networks outside the RBA's interchange standards may be treated differently; the RBA has said it will consult on regulating three-party card networks, mobile wallets, buy now pay later services and e-commerce platforms.

Illustrative arithmetic: if you previously paid surcharges of about 1% on $5,000 of yearly card spending, that is $50 a year you no longer pay. If your card's value per point fell from 0.8 to 0.7 cents on 30,000 points, rewards drop by $30. The net effect depends on your own spending.

Timeline of the review

The RBA also said it would begin a public consultation in mid-2026 on whether to extend regulation to other payment providers. Check the RBA site for progress.

Frequently asked questions

Does the surcharge ban apply to American Express?

American Express is not one of the three designated networks covered by the RBA's standards, but the RBA lists it as not permitting surcharging on its credit cards from 1 October 2026. Check the RBA's FAQ for the current position.

Can a business refuse cards instead?

Yes. Businesses can choose which payment methods to accept, subject to any cash acceptance rules that apply to them.

Will my bank cut my points because of this?

It may or may not. Rewards are a commercial decision for each issuer. If the program terms change, your issuer must follow the notice requirements in the terms and the law; compare the new terms with alternatives.

Do debit card users lose anything?

Debit cards rarely carry rewards, so debit users mainly benefit from the removal of surcharges.

Sources and where to check

• Reserve Bank of Australia — media release of 31 March 2026, Conclusions Paper and FAQs on surcharging and interchange
• Australian Competition and Consumer Commission — pricing displays and misleading conduct
• ASIC Moneysmart — choosing a credit card
• Australian Financial Complaints Authority — complaints about your card issuer