Credit card processing and merchant services in Indiana

Indiana's sales tax is 7%, and for most retail sales that's the whole calculation. Restaurants are where it gets local. Food and beverage taxes are set by area, and the Indiana Department of Revenue lists Marion County's at 2%, in place since July 2005. For example, an Indianapolis cafe charges 9% on a sandwich while the hardware store down the street charges 7% on a hammer, so a POS that knows only one rate will get one of them wrong.

Surcharging is left to the card networks. Indiana's statute books don't address it, as far as we can find, and NCSL's state-by-state table shows nothing for Indiana either. So the Visa and Mastercard rulebooks are what count: a 3% ceiling on Visa, 4% on Mastercard, no more than the processing cost you actually pay, no surcharge at all on debit or prepaid cards, and a sign at your door and register plus a line on the receipt.

Our view for most Indiana merchants: look at the rate before you look at a surcharge. A surcharge moves cost onto customers, and they notice. A better pricing model cuts the cost itself. With interchange-plus pricing, your statement shows the card networks' wholesale cost and our markup as separate lines, so you can see exactly what each sale costs you.

Clearo serves Indiana businesses remotely. Every account gets a dedicated rep, and there's no long-term contract or cancellation fee. The Indianapolis page has the city's numbers, and a free statement review will show what your current processor charges per transaction.