Your morning coffee. Dinner out.
For years, Australians have become used to seeing a little extra added to the bill when they choose to pay by card.
From October 1, that changes.
The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has imposed rules to ensure businesses can no longer impose a surcharge for the use of an eftpos, Mastercard or Visa debit, prepaid or credit card.
The RBA's new rules apply whether you tap or insert a physical card, use a digital card from your phone or other device, or use your card to pay online.
The simple rule of thumb for how the new regulations work is that you shouldn’t be charged more than the advertised price just because you choose to pay by card.
For example, if a coffee is advertised for $5, you shouldn’t be charged $5.10 simply because you tap your card or device to pay.
The RBA has stated that American Express, UnionPay and PayPal have also decided to remove surcharging from 1 October 2026. These firms are not currently subject to formal regulation by the RBA.
So where did these historical extra charges for paying by card come from – and why are they disappearing?
Where did card surcharges come from?
RBA changes in 2003 permitted designated card schemes to allow businesses to pass on the cost of accepting card payments, in the form of card surcharges, giving customers a price signal about the relative cost of different ways to pay.
But more than two decades later, the way Australians pay has changed – and the RBA has concluded card surcharging is no longer achieving its intended purpose.
Why are card surcharges ending?
According to the RBA’s 2025 Consumer Payments Survey, paying in cash has fallen from 69 per cent of in-person payments in 2007 to around 19 per cent in 2025. The shift shows just how much the way Australians pay has changed, with cards and digital payments now making up the vast majority of in-person payments.
The RBA estimates Australian consumers pay about $1.6 billion a year in card surcharges on the eftpos, Mastercard and Visa networks.
It’s one reason that over time, those extra fees became increasingly familiar.
RBA data shows around one in three hospitality businesses, including restaurants, cafes, bars and fast-food outlets, applied a card surcharge in the 2023-24 financial year.
The RBA says the changes being introduced from October 1 are intended to make paying by card simpler, more transparent, and increase competition. Removing surcharging also aligns with the preference of most consumers for payment costs to be incorporated into advertised prices.
Does every extra charge disappear?
No. The changes are specifically about card surcharges – being the extra fee some business add when you choose to pay by card.
The RBA changes do not relate to any other charges a business may choose to apply, including weekend and public holiday surcharges, booking fees and service fees.
For example, cafes charging a Sunday surcharge, or surcharges on taxi fares which are regulated separately by state and territory governments.
So the end of card surcharging doesn’t mean every surcharge you encounter will disappear. The key question is what the surcharge is actually for.
Will things get cheaper?
Not necessarily.
Businesses still have costs involved in accepting card payments. What’s changing is that they can no longer add those costs on as an extra fee on top of the purchase price, just because you want to pay by card.
Some businesses may absorb the cost of card payments and not pass it on to the consumer, as they already may do when accepting cash. Others may choose to increase the purchase price they charge consumers.
So, while you will no longer see an extra card surcharge when you pay, that doesn’t necessarily mean the overall price of the things you buy will fall.
What should be simpler is paying the advertised price, without an extra fee added just because you choose to pay by card.
What should I look out for when I pay?
From 1 October, you shouldn’t be charged an extra fee just because you’re paying using an eftpos, Mastercard or Visa card – that’s whether you tap or insert a physical card, use a digital card from your device, or use your card to pay online. Things to look out for:
- Check the advertised price. You shouldn’t be charged more just because you’re paying by card.
- Check the amount before you pay. If it’s higher than you expected, ask the business why.
- Know what any extra fee is for. Weekend and public holiday surcharges, booking fees and service fees are different from a card surcharge and may still apply.
- Check your receipt. If an extra fee appears to have been added because you paid by card, query it with the business.
What should I do if I think I’ve paid a card surcharge?
From 1 October, if you believe a business has charged you a card surcharge, you should contact the business directly to query the amount you paid and seek a resolution.
What is an interchange fee – and why does it matter?
Interchange is the fee incurred by the business, paid to the card issuer when you use your card to pay for a purchase, and it’s one of the costs that sits behind a card payment.
From 1 October, the RBA has lowered the maximum interchange fees that can apply to Australian-issued cards.
For personal credit cards, for example, the maximum interchange fee has fallen from 0.8% to 0.3%.
You don’t pay the interchange fee directly, and you won’t see it on your receipt, but it’s important because it has traditionally helped fund the cost of card payments, including the cost of credit card rewards and benefit programs.
That’s why the changes happening behind the scenes may also lead to changes customers see in credit card rewards programs.
Why are credit card rewards changing across the industry?
With lower caps on interchange fees, some banks and card issuers have been reviewing their rewards programs.
Those reviews could mean changes to how customers earn points, the benefits available with some cards, or the fees customers pay.
The changes won’t look the same everywhere, but lower interchange fees are prompting the industry to rethink how credit card rewards are structured and funded.
What changes is CommBank making?
CommBank announced it is making changes to the card-based rewards schemes it offers eligible customers.
The older CommBank Awards program ends this month, and in its place, the CommBank Yello rewards scheme is expanding into a points-based rewards program, giving eligible customers more ways to earn and use CommBank Yello points.
Rather than basing the scheme only on credit card spend, the expanded Yello program means eligible customers will also be able earn points through eligible home loans, savings, cards and insurance, and choose how to use their points through a range of rewards, including shopping, travel, gift cards and cash.
Existing CommBank Awards points will automatically convert 1:1 to CommBank Yello points from 1 October.
Find out more about what’s changing with CommBank Yello.
What does it all mean for you?
For most Australians, the most obvious change should be a simple one: you should no longer be charged an extra fee just because you choose to pay by card.
Other fees may still apply and businesses can still set their own prices. But a card surcharge should no longer be added if you tap your card, phone or other device to pay.
From 1 October, check the price, check the amount and know what any extra fee is for.
