The government has recently shared its intention to implement a cap on surcharges for debit and credit card transactions, confirming that it has been actively working on adjustments to these fees for the past three months.
Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly has conveyed his commitment to this initiative, stating that he is currently awaiting guidance from the Commerce Commission before finalising any decisions.
“They’ve consulted on two things. One is around the interbank charge, which is currently 0.7 percent moving to 0.2 percent; that’s what they’ve proposed,” Bayly said.
“The second element is whether they have a total surcharge cap, which is an issue that I’m very interested in.”
Former Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Duncan Webb also revealed that his party had considered similar changes while in government. He expressed frustration over high fees associated with card payments, particularly noting a 2% fee for using PayWave, which he believes does not accurately reflect the actual cost of processing.
“So I hope our consumer affairs minister has a good look at it and stops some more of the gouging by the financial service providers,” Webb said.
The capping of surcharges aligns with broader efforts in Australia, where banning debit card surcharges is being considered to alleviate financial pressures on households.