Your card mix
Debit and prepaid acceptance costs remain in a surcharge program. Review your credit-versus-debit mix before estimating how much processing cost a program could offset.
Pricing programs & compliance
Control the cost.
Get the setup right.
Surcharging and cash discounts can change who pays part of the acceptance cost. They also change your obligations at checkout. AquaPay helps review the program, customer experience and supported equipment together.
Review my pricing programSee the checkout differenceThree approaches.
Three approaches.
Watch what changes.
Choose a program, then a payment method. The price display, receipt and total update together.
Credit-card surcharging
Add a disclosed fee to eligible credit-card payments, where permitted. Debit and prepaid payments stay outside the surcharge program.
Before payment
Disclose the program and the amount. In New York, show the complete credit price before purchase.
At checkout
The payment application identifies eligible credit cards and excludes debit and prepaid.
On the receipt
Show the surcharge separately and include it in the total. Test full and partial refunds.
The fee must stay within your eligible acceptance cost, network limits and local law. A 3% example is not permission to charge 3%.
Try a payment method
Before the customer pays
Show the price upfront
Credit total$103.00
Cash / debit$100.00
Credit total includes the illustrated $3 surcharge. Required notices apply before payment.
AquaPay
Sample merchant · Customer copy
Credit surchargeCredit card
- Service purchase
- $100.00
- Credit surcharge · 3%
- $3.00
- Total paid
- $103.00
Illustrative payment
Illustration only · Before tax
Only an eligible credit payment gets the added fee.
Examples use a $3 surcharge on a $100 sale, or a $3 cash reduction from a $103 standard price. They illustrate different pricing structures, not equivalent percentages or recommended rates. Taxes, tips, local requirements and approved terminal configurations need a separate review.
The merchant decision
Look beyond
the added fee.
The useful comparison is what your business pays each month and what your customers experience at checkout.
Your total commitment
Compare account, gateway, software, equipment and transaction charges together. A credit surcharge does not remove every expense on your statement.
Your customer experience
Clear prices reduce checkout surprises. Plan the wording on menus, shelves and your website, and give staff a simple explanation of each payment option.
Card-network rules
A percentage alone
doesn’t tell the story.
Visa limits U.S. credit-card surcharges to the lower of the applicable merchant discount rate or 3%, and requires at least 30 days’ notice to the acquirer. Mastercard’s maximum is 4%, also subject to acceptance cost and other restrictions, with advance notice to Mastercard and the acquirer. Cross-network requirements and local law can limit the program further.
Account, software, equipment and debit processing costs may remain. We do not present these programs as universally “free” processing.
Before activation, we review:
Your location & sales channels
Storefront, website and telephone transactions may have different disclosure requirements. Review each business location.
Credit, debit & prepaid handling
A surcharge setup must distinguish eligible credit cards from debit and prepaid cards. A “credit” selection does not turn a debit card into a credit card.
Your acceptance cost & program limits
Compare actual costs with network caps, local law and the processor’s requirements. A marketed percentage is not permission to charge that amount.
Price displays, receipts & refunds
Review tags, menus, checkout notices, receipt itemization and how refunds return any applicable fee.
Activation & staff training
Confirm advance notice and any processor registration, test the setup and give staff clear instructions before going live.
Tri-state requirements
Where you operate
makes a difference.
These summaries cover common merchant situations. Requirements must be reviewed separately for each state and sales channel.
New York
Show the complete credit price.
Display the total credit-card price before purchase, excluding sales tax. A percentage-only sign is insufficient. The surcharge cannot exceed the applicable processing cost.
Read official state guidanceCommon questions
Know what changes
before you switch.
General information, reviewed October 28, 2026. Rules and processor requirements can change; implementation requires a current review. This overview is not individualized legal advice.
Visa requirements ↗Mastercard requirements ↗