Convenience Fee Assessment Guidelines for Merchants (Credit Cards)

A merchant that charges a convenience fee must ensure that the fee is:

 ·        Charged for a bona fide convenience in the form of an alternative payment channel outside
       the merchant’s customary payment channels. (Example: A face-to-face merchant allows customers
       the convenience of paying by phone or Internet.)

·         Disclosed to the cardholder as a charge for the alternative payment channel convenience.
  (The fee must not be disclosed as a processing fee or fee to cover merchant costs associated
  with card acceptance.)

·         Added only to a non face-to-face transaction. (Merchants who only operate exclusively in a
  MO/TO or Internet environment may not assess a convenience fee, as there is not an added
  convenience to pay through the current payment channel.)

·         Added as a flat or fixed amount, regardless of the value of the payment due.
  (The fee may not be assessed as a percentage of the transaction amount.)

·         Applicable to all forms of payment accepted in the alternative payment channel.
  (The fee may not be assessed only to customers paying by debit or credit card 
  through the alternative payment channel, but rather to any kind of payment accepted
  through that channel.)

·         Disclosed prior to the completion of the transaction and the cardholder is given the
  opportunity to cancel.

·         Included as part of the total amount of the transaction.

  Please also note:

• A convenience fee may only be charged by the merchant that actually provides goods or services to the cardholder. A convenience fee may not be charged by any third party.

• A convenience fee must NOT be added to a recurring transaction.