RBA Surcharging Ban - What It Means for Your Property – RMS Help Center

This article explains the Australian card surcharge ban that starts on 1 October 2026, lists every place in RMS where a card surcharge can be configured, and shows Australian properties how to remove each one before the deadline.

Overview

The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has concluded its Review of Merchant Card Payment Costs and Surcharging and determined that card surcharging on debit, prepaid, and credit cards will end on 1 October 2026.

The RBA has lifted the rule that previously stopped card schemes from banning surcharges. From 1 October 2026, eftpos, Mastercard and Visa are each introducing no-surcharge rules on their networks. The rules cover debit, credit and prepaid cards, including digital wallet payments on those networks. American Express, JCB and China Union Pay are not covered by the RBA's decision, but these networks have separately confirmed that they will also end surcharging on their card transactions from 1 October 2026.

In practice, every card surcharge must be removed by 1 October 2026. RMS will remove Dynamic Surcharging for Australian RMS Pay properties on that date. Every other card surcharge setting in RMS is configured by your property and must be removed by you before the deadline.

Key Dates

Date	What Happens
1 October 2026	Surcharging on debit, prepaid, and credit cards ends on the eftpos, Mastercard, and Visa networks. Reduced interchange fee caps for domestic card transactions take effect. American Express, JCB, and China Union Pay have separately confirmed they will also end surcharging on their card transactions from this date. RMS removes Dynamic Surcharging for Australian RMS Pay properties on this date.

What This Means for Your Property

RMS will remove one setting for you: Dynamic Surcharging for RMS Pay. Every other card surcharge in RMS is configured by your property and must be removed by you before 1 October 2026. Removing a surcharge setting in RMS takes effect immediately for new payments.

The ban applies to every payment channel, including RMS Pay terminals, card payments processed by your staff in RMS, the RMS Booking Engine, the Guest Portal, the Corporate Portal, Pay By Link and RMS POS. It applies to every card network: eftpos, Mastercard, Visa, American Express, JCB and China Union Pay.

Important! From 1 October 2026, card surcharges are no longer permitted under the eftpos, Mastercard, Visa and American Express network rules in Australia. For details, see the RBA's Frequently Asked Questions on the removal of payment surcharges.

Please Note! This regulation applies to Australian properties only. Properties operating outside Australia are not affected by this change and should continue to follow the surcharging regulations in their own jurisdiction.

For further information, see the Card Surcharge website, co-ordinated by the Australian Payments Network.

Where Card Surcharges Can Be Configured in RMS

There is no single report in RMS that lists every surcharge setting. Use the table below as a checklist. The name of the setting changes from screen to screen: Transaction Fee, Merchant Fee, Credit Card Commission, and Surcharge all refer to a card surcharge charged to the person paying.

Area of RMS	Setting you will see	Applies to	Who removes it
Setup > Accounting > Credit Cards > Transaction Fees tab	Merchant Fee, No Greater Than, Gateway Transaction Fee	Card payments processed by your staff in RMS: Credit Card, EFTPOS (Payment Gateway) and Existing Token receipts, Cash Account receipts, POS Lite and Payment Schedules	Your property
Setup > Accounting > Accounting Options > Receipt Types tab	Credit Card Transaction Fees default	Whether receipts add the Transaction Fee by default	Your property
Setup > Accounting > Accounting Options > Receipt Types tab > Pay By Link	Transaction Fee Percentage, No Greater Than Amount	Pay By Link payments (RMS Pay)	Your property
Setup > Accounting > RMS Pay > Dynamic Surcharging	Enable Dynamic Surcharging, E-Commerce and Terminal surcharge percentages	RMS Pay online form payments, saved card tokens and RMS Pay terminals	RMS, on 1 October 2026
Setup > Property Options > Property Information > Edit > Payment Gateway (Windcave only)	Use Credit Card (Pymt Gateway) Fee (surcharge) from WindCave	Windcave online and terminal payments	Your property, in RMS and in Windcave
Setup > Portal Access > Guest Portal > Accounting Defaults tab	Charge a Credit Card Transaction Fee of	Guest Portal payments	Your property
Setup > Portal Access > Corporate Portal > Accounting Defaults tab	Charge a Credit Card Transaction Fee	Corporate Portal payments	Your property
Setup > Online Bookings > Online Options > Payment Options/Fees tab	Credit Card Commission (%)	RMS Booking Engine payments	Your property
RMS POS > Back Office > Touch Settings > Keyboards > payment button	Merchant Fees	Card payment buttons in RMS POS	Your property
Third-party booking engines, kiosks and integrations	Set in the third-party system	Payments taken outside RMS screens	The third-party provider

Please Note! Some RMS settings use the word surcharge or commission but are not card surcharges. The Area Selection Surcharge, the Manager Surcharge, the Surcharge option on a Sundry Charge, and the Owner Accounting Charge To Owner percentage on the Credit Card Details tab are not calculated based on how the guest pays. The RBA states that the changes apply only to surcharges added because a customer pays by card, and not to weekend surcharges, public holiday surcharges, booking fees or service fees (see the RBA's Frequently Asked Questions).

Dynamic Surcharging (RMS Pay) - Removed by RMS

If your property uses Dynamic Surcharging for RMS Pay, RMS will remove the configuration on 1 October 2026. You do not need to disable it yourself. From that date, card payments taken through RMS Pay will be processed at the transaction value with no dynamic surcharge added.

If single tap flow is already enabled on your terminal, there is no need turn it off. It can stay enabled safely, even after dynamic surcharging has been switched off.

The RMS Pay terminal retains its existing surcharge configuration until it synchronises, which happens automatically every three hours. After syncing, it prompts to be re-boarded for the new configuration.

Alternatively, you can force the Update once the change has been made in RMS.

On the RMS Pay terminal:

Access Admin & Settings on the device.
Select Config.
Enter your passcode and confirm with the green key.
Select the Update button.

To Restart the Terminal After Update:

Go to Admin & Settings.
Select Power.
Enter your passcode and confirm with the green key.
Select Restart.
When prompted with "Restart Application", select Yes.

If you prefer to remove Dynamic Surcharging before 1 October 2026:

Go to Setup > Accounting > RMS Pay > Dynamic Surcharging.
Clear the Enable Dynamic Surcharging checkbox.
Select Save/Exit.
Update and restart each RMS Pay terminal using the steps above.

What You Need to Remove Before 1 October 2026

Work through each section below that applies to your property. Each section gives the steps to remove the surcharge and links to the full setup article for that screen.

Credit Card Transaction Fees (staff-processed payments)

Transaction Fees are configured for each card type and each property in Credit Card Setup. The percentage is labelled Merchant Fee. A flat Gateway Transaction Fee can also be configured on the same record. Both are charged to the guest for paying with that card type, which is how the RBA describes a card surcharge, so both need to be set to zero. See the RBA's Frequently Asked Questions for the definition.

Go to Setup > Accounting > Credit Cards.
Select the Edit icon on a card type.
Navigate to the Transaction Fees tab.
Select the Edit icon on a row, or double-click the row. Check the (Default) row and every property-specific row.
Set the Merchant Fee to 0.
Set the Gateway Transaction Fee to 0.
Select Save/Exit.
Repeat for every card type your property accepts, including American Express, JCB, China Union Pay, and debit card types.

Please Note! The (Default) Transaction Fee row cannot be deleted. Set its values to zero instead. Property-specific rows can be deleted.

Default Transaction Fee setting and staff override

The Receipt Types tab in Accounting Options sets whether receipts add a Transaction Fee by default. Set it to Do Not Charge Transaction Fee. The default setting alone is not enough: users whose Security Profile includes Allow Users to Override Credit Card Transaction Fee Option can still add the fee on a receipt while a card type has a Merchant Fee configured. Set the card type fees to zero first.

Go to Setup > Accounting > Accounting Options.
Navigate to the Receipt Types tab.
Set Credit Card Transaction Fees to Do Not Charge Transaction Fee.
Select Save/Exit.

Tip! After saving changes to setup, users should log out of RMS and log back in so the change takes effect.

Pay By Link

The Pay By Link Transaction Fee is configured separately from the card type fees. The RBA advises that if a card payment is made on or after 1 October 2026, surcharging may no longer be available even if the invoice was issued earlier, so review any links that are still unpaid on that date.

Go to Setup > Accounting > Accounting Options.
Navigate to the Receipt Types tab.
In the Pay By Link section, set the Transaction Fee Percentage to 0.
Select Save/Exit.

Please note! Pay By Links created before the 1st October will still include the static surcharge. If you have any outstanding links sent before then, cancel and resend them.

RMS Booking Engine - Credit Card Commission

On the RMS Booking Engine, the card surcharge is called Credit Card Commission. It is configured on the Payment Options/Fees tab of Online Options.

Go to Setup > Online Bookings > Online Options.
Select the property.
Navigate to the Payment Options/Fees tab.
Clear the Credit Card Commission checkbox.
Select Save/Exit.

Please Note! The Credit Card Commission setting also applies to bookings made through the new RMS Booking Engine (IBE+).

Guest Portal

Go to Setup > Portal Access > Guest Portal.
Navigate to the Accounting Defaults tab.
Set Charge a Credit Card Transaction Fee to 0.
Select Save.

For the full list of Accounting Defaults settings, see Guest Portal.

Corporate Portal

Go to Setup > Portal Access > Corporate Portal.
Navigate to the Accounting Defaults tab.
Set Charge a Credit Card Transaction Fee to 0.
Select Save.

For the full list of Accounting Defaults settings, see Enabling Corporate Portal Payments.

Windcave gateway surcharge

If your payment gateway is Windcave, RMS can take the card fee from Windcave instead of from the RMS Transaction Fee settings. The surcharge percentage itself is held in your Windcave account, so both RMS and Windcave need updating. See Windcave Configuration.

Go to Setup > Property Options > Property Information.
Select the Edit icon on the property.
Select Payment Gateway from the menu on the left.
Clear Use Credit Card (Pymt Gateway) Fee (surcharge) from WindCave. The checkbox sits under the Ecommerce Online Payment Gateway section and, if your terminal gateway is also Windcave, under the EFTPOS (Pymt Gateway) Terminal Payment Gateway section.
Select Save/Exit.
Contact Windcave to remove the surcharge configured on your Windcave account.

RMS POS

If your property uses RMS POS for shop or counter sales, EFTPOS, Visa, and Mastercard payment buttons may have a merchant fee configured. Each affected payment button must be updated on every keyboard layout in use:

Removing Card Payment Surcharges in RMS POS

Third-party booking engines, kiosks, and integrations

If you use a third-party booking engine, kiosk, online travel agent, or integration that applies its own card surcharge, contact that provider directly. RMS cannot remove a surcharge that is configured outside RMS.

Reporting on Current Surcharges

To understand what surcharge revenue your property currently collects, run the Credit Card Transaction Fees Report. This will help you assess the financial impact of removing surcharges and plan any necessary pricing adjustments.

When building the report, select the General Ledger Account Code (GL Acc Code) assigned to your Credit Card Transaction Fees and, if your property uses Dynamic Surcharging, the GL Acc Code selected on the Dynamic Surcharging screen. Properties with more than one GL Acc Code for transaction fees should select all of them.

Recommended Actions

Audit your current surcharge settings. Use the checklist table in this article to check each area of RMS where a card surcharge may be configured.
Run the Credit Card Transaction Fees Report. Understand the revenue impact so you can plan ahead.
Review your pricing strategy. With surcharges no longer permitted, consider whether your rates need to be adjusted to account for the change. Reduced interchange fees from your payment provider may partially offset the loss of surcharge revenue.
Remove surcharge settings before 1 October 2026. Work through each section of What You Need to Remove Before 1 October 2026. RMS removes Dynamic Surcharging for you.
Update guest-facing wording. Update descriptions, terms and conditions, booking confirmations and signage that mention a card surcharge, and brief your front desk and reservations teams so they can answer guest questions from 1 October 2026.
Contact your payment provider. Speak with your bank or payment processor about the new interchange fee caps and how they will apply to your merchant account.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does this apply to our property if we operate outside Australia?

No. This is an Australian regulation, and it applies to Australian properties only, whether you use RMS Pay or a third-party payment gateway. If your property operates outside Australia, nothing changes for you, and you should continue to follow the surcharging rules that apply in your own country.

Can we keep surcharging American Express?

No. American Express, JCB and China Union Pay are not covered by the RBA's decision, but all three have separately confirmed that they will end surcharging on their card transactions from 1 October 2026 as well. Remove the surcharge percentages configured against those card types along with the rest.

Do the changes apply to payments that are not made by card?

No. The changes apply to card payments on the eftpos, Mastercard and Visa networks, with American Express, JCB and China Union Pay separately ending surcharging on the same date. The RBA does not currently regulate surcharges on non-card payment methods such as a bank transfer.

Before you apply or keep a fee on a non-card payment method, check the position with your payment provider and the current Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) guidance.

Does this apply to our booking fees, cleaning fees or other charges?

No. What ends is the surcharge added because a guest pays by card. The RBA states that the changes do not apply to weekend surcharges, public holiday surcharges, booking fees or service fees.

Several RMS settings use the word surcharge or commission but are not card surcharges, because they are not calculated on how the guest pays: the Area Selection Surcharge, the Manager Surcharge, the Surcharge option on a Sundry Charge, and the Owner Accounting Charge To Owner percentage on the Credit Card Details tab. These are out of scope and can stay as they are. If you are unsure whether a specific fee at your property is affected, check with your own legal or financial adviser.

Will RMS remove our surcharges automatically?

Only one of them. RMS removes Dynamic Surcharging for Australian RMS Pay properties on 1 October 2026, and your RMS Pay terminal then needs to sync or be updated to pick up the new configuration.

Every other card surcharge in RMS is configured by your property and must be removed by you before the deadline. Work through the checklist in this article so nothing is missed.

We took a deposit before 1 October 2026. Can we still add a surcharge to the balance?

The date that matters is the date the card payment is made, not the date the booking was taken or the invoice was issued. The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) states that where a card payment is made on or after 1 October 2026, surcharging may no longer be available even if the invoice was issued earlier.

This covers deposits, balances, and any Payment Schedule that collects a card payment on or after that date. Remove your surcharge settings before 1 October 2026 so that a payment taken from that date does not add one.

Can we increase our rates to cover the cost instead?

Yes. What ends on 1 October 2026 is the separate card surcharge, not your ability to recover card acceptance costs. The RBA states that those costs can be reflected in a business's overall pricing rather than charged as a separate surcharge. Reduced interchange fee caps for domestic card transactions also take effect on 1 October 2026, which may partly offset the change.

How you price is a commercial decision for your property. Speak with your accountant or financial adviser before changing your rates.

How can we help?

RBA Surcharging Ban - What It Means for Your Property