Every year in April and October, the card brands update processing rates and rules. Verisave has been monitoring developments to provide our clients with advance notice of the changes that will go into effect.
Impending rule and rate changes that will impact the broadest number of merchants are highlighted below.
We anticipate the rule changes below will be implemented, but final confirmation of the changes will not be available until October. Verisave will continue to monitor the situation and update this information accordingly.
New Digital Commerce Services Fee – US
Effective October 1, 2023, Visa is expected to begin assessing a new digital eCommerce fee of 0.0075% (with a minimum of $0.0075) on all settled card-not-present transactions. This fee will include access to the following services, which Visa will no longer bill for in the US: Address Verification Service (AVS), Card Verification Value 2 (CVV2) Verification and Merchant-Initiated Transaction Service (MIT).
Modifications to Small Merchant Interchange Program – US
Effective October 13, 2023, Visa is expected to introduce new fees/rates to support the existing Small Merchant Program. The fee programs will apply to Visa consumer credit transactions for eligible merchants in the following segments: Restaurant, Taxi, Real estate, Education, Healthcare, Advertising, Insurance, Services and Telecom.
To be eligible to participate in this program, a merchant’s annual domestic consumer credit sales cannot exceed $280,000, and the merchant cannot surcharge customers.
Modifications to Interregional Interchange Programs – US
On October 13, 2023, Visa is expected to update its interregional interchange program, eliminating, and introducing various fee programs.
These fees apply when the merchant and issuer are in different countries.
New Preauthorization Fee – US
Effective October 8, 2023, Mastercard is expected to introduce a preauthorization fee. For card present transactions the fee will be 0.0075% (minimum of $0.01) and for card-not-present transactions 0.0125% minimum of $0.01.
These fees will not apply to Automated Fuel Dispenser (MCC 5542), debit, private label, nor non-Mastercard products or Mastercard transit aggregated or transit debit recovery transactions.
At this time, no major changes are expected from American Express.
At this time, no major changes are expected from Discover Card.
Verisave is a third-party cost-reduction firm specializing in merchant accounts and credit card processing fees.
Verisave is not a payment processor, and is not affiliated with any processors, card brands, or banks.
Verisave has more than 20 years of experience optimizing and monitoring the credit card processing industry.