New Deal to Lower Credit Card Fees for Small Businesses on the Horizon

October 18, 2024 TruthUSA

Credit card fees for small and medium-sized businesses are starting to decrease as a result of an agreement between the federal government and the two major card companies.

Mastercard and Visa are lowering interchange fees by up to 27 percent, which is expected to save businesses approximately $1 billion over five years, according to Ottawa.

The official implementation of this change is scheduled for Saturday, although some payment processors have already begun passing on the savings to their customers.

The Canadian Federation of Independent Business has raised concerns that not all processors have been transparent about passing on the savings. For example, Stripe has indicated that not all customers will see a change in fees.

Stripe has clarified that customers on its interchange plus plan, where charges vary based on the transaction type, will experience the fee reductions, while those on its flat-rate plan will not due to other increased fees and costs.

On the other hand, processors like Moneris have stated that qualifying businesses under both their interchange plus and flat-rate models will benefit from the reduction in fees.