A credit card surcharge is a fee a business adds to a payment because the customer paid with a credit card. It recovers what accepting the card costs. Under Visa's US rules it can't be more than your merchant discount rate for credit cards or 3%, whichever is lower. It applies to credit cards only, never debit or prepaid. You notify your processor in writing at least 30 days before you start, disclose it at the point of entry and at checkout, and show it as a separate charge on every receipt. Some states prohibit or limit it.
What is a surcharge?
Visa defines a credit card surcharge as a fee a merchant adds to a credit card transaction for accepting the credit card. It sits on top of your price and is included in the transaction amount, not collected separately. In the US it is allowed on credit cards, subject to Visa's rules and to state law. If you are weighing it against a flat fee for an online channel, see convenience fee vs surcharge.
How much can a surcharge be?
No more than the lower of two numbers:
- Your merchant discount rate for credit cards. Visa calls this your Visa Surcharge Cap: the average rate you pay your processor on credit card transactions over the past one or twelve months, whichever you choose.
- 3%. Visa's maximum for the US and US territories.
An example, with a 2.9% card rate: on an installment of $1,108.33, the most you could add is $32.14. At 3% it would be $33.25, but the lower number applies, so $32.14 is the limit.
| Your credit card rate | The most you can surcharge |
|---|---|
| Below 3% | Your rate |
| 3% or above | 3% |
Can you choose which cards to surcharge?
Within limits. You can set one surcharge for all Visa credit cards (the brand level) or one for each Visa credit product type, such as Visa Signature (the product level), but not both. The surcharge has to be the same whichever bank issued the card. If a card brand that costs you as much or more limits surcharging on its cards, Visa says you typically must surcharge Visa on the same terms.
Debit and prepaid cards can't be surcharged at all. See debit card surcharge.
What do you have to do before you start?
Tell your acquirer (your processor) in writing at least 30 calendar days before you first charge a surcharge, or before you announce that you will, whichever comes first. The surcharge also has to be identified in the transaction data, in a field your processor fills.
How do you disclose a surcharge?
Visa asks for clear disclosure in three places:
- At the point of entry. Online, that is the first page that shows the card brands you accept.
- At the point of sale. Online, the checkout page. It must state the exact amount or percentage, that you are the one charging it, that it only applies to credit, and that it is no more than your card rate.
- On every receipt, as a separate charge.
For online, mail and phone payments, the customer must be able to cancel after seeing the surcharge.
What happens to the surcharge on a refund?
You refund it. Visa's rules say a refund includes any surcharge charged on the payment, and a partial refund includes a pro-rated share of it.
Where can't you surcharge?
The rule follows the state where the business location is. As of 15 February 2024, Visa understood that Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, Oklahoma and Puerto Rico prohibit surcharging, and that Colorado, Minnesota, New Jersey and New York set their own requirements. Visa says that list may contain errors and isn't legal advice. A business with locations in several states can surcharge where state law allows it and not where it doesn't.
Can a surcharge go on a payment plan?
Visa's surcharge rules don't exclude installment payments, unlike its convenience-fee rules. Each card payment on the plan can carry a disclosed surcharge inside the cap, where your state allows it. A surcharge can't be combined with a convenience fee or a service fee on the same transaction.
This page uses Visa's published rules. Mastercard and the other networks publish their own, and your processor applies them. General information, not legal advice.
- Visa: U.S. Merchant Surcharge Q and A
- Visa Core Rules and Visa Product and Service Rules, 18 April 2026: section 1.5.4.14 (refunds), sections 5.5.1.5 to 5.5.1.9 (US credit card surcharges), section 5.5.2.1 (convenience fees), section 11.12.4, and the glossary entries for Credit Card Surcharge and Visa Surcharge Cap
Every figure on this page was checked against these sources on Oct 6, 2026. General information, not legal or tax advice.