If you’ve been adding a surcharge to guest payments at checkout, pay attention to this article, because that’s about to change. The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has confirmed that credit and debit card surcharges will be banned from 1 October 2026. Whether you run a hotel, motel, holiday park or serviced apartment, this affects you.
Here’s a plain-English breakdown of what’s happening, what it means for your property, and how to get ready.
My advice to operators is know your numbers. Understand what card acceptance is costing you across every channel and then you can make smart decisions about where and how to factor that in. It could be as simple as a flat lift on your room rates, but my advice is to talk to your accountant, look at your full payment mix, and build a response that works for your business specifically.
James MacRae VP Payments - RMS
What's changing and when?
From 1 October 2026, businesses in Australia will no longer be able to charge guests a separate surcharge for paying by Visa, Mastercard, AMEX or eftpos. That extra percentage you may currently add at the point of payment — gone.
What that means for your business
Instead of adding those fees separately, you’ll need to consolidate those costs as part of your overarching pricing and cost management strategy.
How to prepare
Step 1: Start with your numbers
Run the Credit Card Transaction Fees Report in RMS to see how much surcharge revenue you’re currently generating across every channel, and review your merchant fees.
Step 2: Check where you're applying surcharges today
Surcharges in RMS aren’t configured in one place. They may appear across:
- Dynamic Surcharging
- Credit card setup for terminal and gateway payments
- The online booking engine payment fees
- Guest Portal payments
- Pay by Link
- RMS POS
- Manager Surcharges
Step 3: Rethink how and when you collect, not just what you charge
Try using Advanced Payment Schedules to collect smaller amounts at multiple points before arrival to reduce your cost per transaction. With RMS Pay, this runs automatically.
Step 4: Think strategically about your rates
Find out where the cost really sits: which channels carry the highest card costs, factor your merchant fees into cost of sales and speak with your accountant about what levers you can pull to cover costs in room rates.
Step 5: Experiment with lower-cost methods
Try direct debit and bank transfers to see if you can shrink the gap before you absorb it.
Step 6: Update your guest-facing materials
Remove any reference to surcharges before October. Missing this creates confusion and potential complaints from guests after the ban takes effect.
What happens if you continue to surcharge after the ban
If you do surcharge by accident, you can reverse the charges manually, refunding your guest, but if you continue to breach the surcharging ban, ACCC penalties apply. Work through each channel before the deadline.
How can RMS Help
If you have questions about how these changes affect your payment costs, we're here to help.
For RMS Pay users, we'll notify you of any surcharging changes before they take effect. If you use third-party point-of-sale, checkout, or payment tools alongside RMS, check with those providers directly for updates.
The bottom line
The October 2026 deadline is closer than it sounds, and the properties that come out of this in the strongest position will be the ones that plan ahead — reviewing their pricing, their payment setup, and their owner agreements before the rules kick in, rather than scrambling afterwards.
The change is significant, but it’s also manageable. And for your guests, a cleaner, more transparent checkout experience is genuinely better.
Learn more in our help article or visit the RBA website.
