Illegal trade fees on passports could cost Australians $9 million

The scandals have sparked wider debate over whether surcharges on cards should be banned as growing volumes of transactions are carried out through cashless payments and as dissatisfaction among the country’s shoppers over the fees grows.

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In 2022, card payments made up more than three-quarters of all payments, while cash made up only 13 percent of transactions. The total cost of surcharges, which on an individual basis can range from 1 to 10 percent of the purchase price, is estimated to be approximately $4 billion annually.

Last month, the federal government said it was prepared to permanently ban all debit card surcharges from 2026, subject to the Reserve Bank’s review of surcharges, and subject to safeguards to ensure both small businesses and consumers can benefit from benefit from reduced costs.

Businesses may charge an additional fee for card payments, but this amount cannot exceed the cost to the business of using that type of payment.