What is a card surcharge?

What is the difference between a card surcharge and a card fee?

A surcharge is applied by the seller: it appears at the point of sale, as an addition to the price of the thing being bought, and the customer can usually avoid it only by paying another way. A card fee works differently. It is set by the bank or card provider that issued the card and is charged to the card account rather than to the individual purchase, so it appears on the statement whether or not the merchant adds anything at checkout. European Union guidance treats the two as separate items, and lists costs such as a foreign transaction fee charged by your bank or card provider, a currency conversion fee, and a fee charged by the owner of a cash machine as extra costs of paying in another currency, alongside its rules on merchant surcharges. [2]

Issuer fees are published by the card provider on its own terms. In Australia, Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CommBank) lists a monthly fee of $6 on its Low Rate credit card and monthly fees of $15, $20 or $25 on CommBank Neo, and states that its Ultimate credit card has 0% international transaction fees on purchases made overseas or online while its Low Rate and Low Fee cards state that international transaction fees apply. [3] Those are charges on the card account set out by the issuer, and they exist independently of anything a merchant chooses to add at the till. See cardholder agreement for the document that governs them.

Where are card surcharges banned?

Traders in the European Union are not allowed to charge you extra for using your credit or debit card. [2] The rule sits within the EU's consumer pricing requirements, which also oblige a trader to inform you clearly about the total price of goods or services, including all taxes and additional charges, before you commit to pay. [2]

For travel tickets bought online or in person, all taxes, fees and charges must be included in the total price and must appear from the beginning of the booking process, so that prices from different operators can be compared. [2] Any optional supplement, such as travel insurance, must be clearly indicated as optional and offered only on an opt-in basis. [2] If you find unclear online pricing when booking a flight, the guidance says you can report it to the national authorities in your EU country of residence. [2]

The ban applies to traders in the EU and to consumer credit and debit cards. It does not remove the card network from the transaction, since the card itself is still processed through its network; see card network for how that layer works.

How is a surcharge different from a currency conversion charge?

A conversion charge comes from the payment chain rather than from the seller's price list. If you are paying in EU currencies other than the euro, you may still be charged a currency conversion fee by your card provider when you use your card in another EU country, even though the trader may not add a card surcharge. [2]

When a merchant or website offers to charge you in your home currency instead of the local currency, it must tell you exactly how much extra that costs and express the cost as a percentage mark-up over the latest European Central Bank exchange rates. [2] The guidance gives the example of a hotel that converts a bill using the ECB rate and informs the guest of the mark-up it will add. [2] You always have the right to refuse and pay in the local currency instead. [2] Paying in the local currency means waiting for your statement or card bill to see the final cost, which the guidance describes as often the cheapest option. [2] See dynamic currency conversion and foreign transaction fee.

Exceptions and limits

• Card types outside the EU ban. The prohibition has two carve-outs: American Express and Diners Club cards, and business or corporate credit cards where your employer is billed instead of you. [2]
• Cap on the permitted fee. On those card types a trader may still charge a fee, but it cannot be more than what it actually costs the trader to process the payment, so the ceiling is tied to the trader's processing cost rather than to a rate the trader picks. [2]
• Optional extras need consent. Additional payments such as express delivery, gift wrapping or travel insurance may only be charged where you explicitly selected them; a pre-ticked box does not count as consent, and a payment collected that way should be reimbursed. [2]
• Price by nationality or residence. As an EU national or resident you cannot be charged a higher price for goods or services in the EU simply because of your nationality or country of residence, which is a separate protection from the surcharge ban. [2]
• Market scope. This page sets out the European Union position. Rules in Australia, the United States and other markets are not covered here.

Frequently asked questions

Can a shop charge me extra for paying by card?

In the European Union, a trader is not allowed to charge you extra for using a credit or debit card. [2] A fee is still possible on American Express or Diners Club cards and on business or corporate cards billed to an employer, but only up to the trader's actual processing cost. [2]

Is a card surcharge the same as an international transaction fee?

No. A surcharge is added by the merchant at the point of sale, while an international transaction fee is charged by your bank or card provider as part of the cost of paying in another currency. [2] CommBank, for example, offers 0% international transaction fees on its Ultimate credit card and states that they apply on its Low Rate and Low Fee cards. [3]

Can a hotel or website bill me in my home currency?

It can offer the choice, but it must tell you exactly how much extra the conversion costs, expressed as a percentage mark-up over the latest European Central Bank exchange rates. [2] You always have the right to say no and pay in the local currency. [2]

How much can a trader add for an American Express card in the EU?

No more than what it actually costs the trader to process that payment, because American Express and Diners Club cards fall outside the general ban. [2]

Related pages

Terms: card network, cardholder agreement, dynamic currency conversion, foreign transaction fee, statement credit. Browse the full frequent flyer glossary.

Sources

Sources checked on 18 October 2026. It covers the European Union rules on card surcharges and the card-account fees published by one Australian issuer; surcharge rules in Australia, the United States and other markets are not covered here.

1. Your Europe: pricing, payments and price discrimination in the EU, checked 18 October 2026
2. Commonwealth Bank of Australia credit cards and card fees, checked 18 October 2026