Credit card surcharging: what Visa’s rules say about adding a card fee

What a surcharge is in Visa’s rules

Visa’s rules define a credit card surcharge, for the US, US territories and Canada, as a fee a merchant adds to a credit card transaction for accepting a credit card. Outside those cases the general rule is the opposite: a merchant must not add any amount over the advertised or normal price unless applicable law expressly requires that surcharging be permitted (section 1.5.5.2).

The rules quoted here are from the Visa Core Rules and Visa Product and Service Rules, edition of 24 October 2026, opened on 9 November 2026. They are Visa’s own rules for its network. Other card networks publish their own surcharge rules, which this guide does not cover, and state laws set their own requirements on top.

Which cards can carry a surcharge

In the US region, Visa allows a fixed or variable surcharge on Visa credit card transactions, subject to applicable laws (section 5.5.1.7). Debit card transactions must not carry a credit card surcharge. Where a terminal offers “credit” and “debit” buttons, the merchant must make sure a debit card is not surcharged whichever button the customer presses, and must make clear that debit transactions cannot be surcharged (section 5.5.1.9).

The surcharge can be set at one of two levels, never both: the same surcharge on every Visa credit card transaction (brand level), or the same surcharge on every transaction of one Visa credit product type (product level). Either way it must be the same whichever bank issued the card, after any discounts the merchant offers at checkout, and it must be included in the transaction amount and identified in the transaction data rather than collected separately.

How much a surcharge can be

Section 5.5.1.8 sets the US maximum credit card surcharge at 3.00%. Below that ceiling, a brand-level surcharge must not exceed the merchant’s Visa surcharge cap, which the glossary defines as the average merchant discount rate the merchant pays its acquirer for credit card transactions, calculated over the preceding one or 12 months at the merchant’s option. A product-level surcharge must not exceed the merchant’s credit card surcharge cap less the debit card cost of acceptance, which the glossary ties to the Federal Reserve’s Regulation II debit cap (21 cents plus 0.05% of the transaction for covered issuers before any fraud-prevention adjustment, 12 CFR 235.3).

For a merchant on high-risk pricing, the 3.00% ceiling is the line that matters most. If an offer’s average rate on credit card sales is above 3.00%, the surcharge still stops at 3.00%; the rest of the cost stays with the merchant. If the average rate is below 3.00%, that lower rate is the limit for a brand-level surcharge.

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Treating Visa the same as other credit card brands

Section 5.5.1.6 stops a US merchant surcharging Visa credit cards in a payment channel where another credit card brand prohibits or limits surcharging, unless the merchant surcharges Visa on the same conditions it could, or does, apply to that brand. The rule lists exceptions: for example where the other brand costs the merchant less to accept and does not prohibit surcharging, or where that brand prohibits surcharging and the merchant actually surcharges it by at least the lesser of that brand’s cost of acceptance and the Visa surcharge.

In practice this means a surcharge decision is made across the brands a merchant accepts in each channel, online, by phone or in person, not one network at a time.

Notice to the acquirer and disclosure to customers

• Tell the acquirer in writing at least 30 calendar days before first surcharging, or before publicly announcing the intention, whichever comes first (section 5.5.1.5).
• Disclose the surcharge clearly and prominently at the point of entry and at the point of transaction (section 5.5.1.9). For online sales, Visa’s table 5-3 gives the first page that references the card brands accepted and the checkout page, each in at least 10-point Arial and no less prominent than surrounding text.
• At checkout, the disclosure must state the exact amount or percentage, that the merchant is assessing it and that it applies only to credit transactions, and that it is not greater than the merchant discount rate the merchant pays for Visa credit card transactions.
• For online, mail, phone and unattended sales, give the customer the chance to cancel after the surcharge is disclosed.

Refunds, convenience fees and what a breach costs

A refund must include the surcharge (section 1.5.4.14), pro-rated when only part of the sale is refunded. A convenience fee is a different thing: in the US, Visa’s rules allow it only for a genuine alternative payment channel outside the merchant’s usual ones, as a flat amount, never on recurring or instalment transactions, and never by a merchant that sells only online, by mail or by phone (table 5-4, “not charged if the merchant operates exclusively in a card-absent environment”). It must not be charged in addition to a surcharge.

Section 11.13.4 lets a card issuer file a compliance case against a surcharge that is too high, applied to a transaction type where surcharging is not permitted, assessed by a third party, not disclosed or shown on the receipt as required, or not refunded. The case is for the surcharge amount, and the issuer must credit its cardholder. Compliance cases are filed between Visa’s members, the banks on each side of the payment; how the cost of one is passed on to a merchant depends on the merchant’s agreement with its provider.

State laws are a separate layer

Visa’s rules make surcharging subject to applicable laws and regulations. US states have their own rules on whether and how a card surcharge or a fee for paying by card may be charged, and they differ. This guide does not summarise them or say whether surcharging is lawful for any business or in any state: check the current law where you and your customers are, with your provider and your own adviser.

What to ask a provider before you surcharge

• Does the provider allow surcharging on its accounts, and what does it need from you before you start (the written 30-day notice, a review of your checkout)?
• What is your average merchant discount rate on Visa credit cards over the last one or 12 months? That figure, or 3.00% if it is lower, is the ceiling for a brand-level surcharge.
• Can the gateway and checkout tell credit from debit and prepaid cards, so that only credit transactions are surcharged, and can it show the amount before payment and include it in the transaction amount?
• How are refunds handled, so that the surcharge is refunded with the sale?

Questions, answered