From 1 October 2026, the Visa, Mastercard and EFTPOS card networks will introduce ‘no surcharge’ rules for businesses that accept payments made with prepaid, debit and credit cards from each network. The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has also mandated a reduction in fees charged to businesses by those payment providers.
American Express, which is not subject to the RBA guidelines, has confirmed on its website that it supports the RBA’s payment reforms and will also ban surcharging by businesses accepting American Express. At time of writing, it is not clear whether American Express will reduce the fees it charges to businesses who accept Amex.
Removing surcharging will simplify card payments and align with most consumers’ preference for payment costs to be incorporated into advertised prices.
Businesses currently relying on surcharges to pass on the costs of their merchant service fees may need to adopt a small increase in prices or absorb the cost of the reduced fees charged by the payment providers. Whether to continue to provide the option of American Express is another decision for business owners to review if Amex maintain their higher merchant service fees.
Take a moment to prepare for these changes and how they may affect your business’ price structure and payment options provided. For Sybiz Vision users, plan to remove card surcharges at close of business Wednesday 30 September 2026. To adjust the surcharge rate to zero for card transactions, edit the values in the Pay & Process tab under Debtor defaults. If you need any assistance, please reach out to your Sybiz Authorised Business Partner.
