Credit card processing and merchant services in St. Catharines, ON
Canada's Code of Conduct for the payment card industry says your statement has to break out what each fee costs you. St. Catharines businesses can use that to check every line.
A merchant statement is supposed to tell you what you paid and why. Under the Code of Conduct for the Payment Card Industry in Canada, which replaced the older code on October 30, 2024, you must receive or have access to a statement at least monthly. As applicable, it has to show the per-transaction rate and the rate and total amount charged for interchange, network assessment fees and all other fees. If your statement shows one blended discount fee and little else, ask your processor where the rest is.
You can check it yourself in a few minutes. Add up every fee for the month and divide by your card sales. Say a café in St. Catharines took $28,000 in card payments and paid $812 in fees: its effective rate is 2.9%. Then find how much of that $812 was interchange, which goes to the banks that issued the cards, and how much was markup. On interchange-plus pricing the two sit on separate lines. Our guide to reading a merchant statement goes section by section.
The same Code requires merchant agreements that include card processing to come with a cover page of prescribed information. Read it before you sign anything new.
Hotels, B&Bs and short-term rentals have a city tax to verify. The City of St. Catharines has applied a Municipal Accommodation Tax to accommodations purchased in the city since January 1, 2023, and its MAT page lists a 4% rate for 2025 and 2026 under By-law 2023-014. One of the City's short-term rental pages still gives the 2% rate from the 2023 start, so confirm the current figure with the City before changing your booking system.
St. Catharines had 136,803 residents at the 2021 Census, within a St. Catharines - Niagara census metropolitan area of 433,604. A free statement review does the line-by-line check for you, and our Ontario page covers the provincial rules.
Rules that matter in St. Catharines
The Municipal Accommodation Tax in St. Catharines
The City of St. Catharines has applied a Municipal Accommodation Tax to accommodations purchased within the city since January 1, 2023. Its MAT page lists a 4% rate effective January 1, 2025 and January 1, 2026, under By-law 2023-014.
The City's short-term rental licensing page still describes a 2% tax from the 2023 start, so confirm the current rate with the City before you set it in your booking system.
Sources: City of St. Catharines, Municipal Accommodation Tax; City of St. Catharines, Short-term rental licensing
Payment services we provide
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Common questions
What does my merchant statement have to show?
Under the Code of Conduct for the Payment Card Industry in Canada, you must receive or have access to statement information at least monthly, including, as applicable, the per-transaction rate and the rate and total charged for interchange, network assessment fees and all other fees. A statement that lumps everything into one discount fee doesn't let you check any of that. Our guide to the Code of Conduct covers the rest.
How do I work out my effective rate?
Divide the month's total processing fees by the month's card sales. If you paid $600 in fees on $24,000 of card sales, your effective rate is 2.5%. Do it for three months in a row, because one month can mislead. Then compare the interchange portion with the markup to see which part a better price could change.
What is the accommodation tax in St. Catharines?
The City's MAT page lists 4% for 2025 and 2026 under By-law 2023-014, with the tax applying to accommodations purchased in the city since January 1, 2023. One of the City's short-term rental pages still mentions the 2% rate from 2023, so check the current figure with the City before you update your booking engine.
Can a St. Catharines business surcharge credit cards?
Yes, on Visa and Mastercard credit cards, but never above your own cost of acceptance or 2.4%, whichever is lower. Your statement is where you find that cost, so check it first. You also need 30 days' notice, signs at the entrance and the point of sale, and the amount on every receipt. Our guide to the merchant discount rate shows how to calculate it.
Disclaimer: general information, not professional advice
This page is general educational information, not legal, tax, accounting or financial advice. Rules and rates vary by place and change, so confirm them with the official source and a qualified professional before you act. Full terms are in our Terms of Service.
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