Stop absorbing credit card fees. Pass them to the card.
Credit card surcharging lets you add a small fee to credit card transactions, recovering up to 100% of your processing costs. Clearo sets it up properly so you stay compliant and your customers stay informed.
How surcharging works
When a customer pays with a credit card, you currently absorb the processing fee, typically 2-3% of the transaction. Surcharging lets you add that cost to the credit card transaction, so the customer who benefits from using their credit card (points, rewards, cashback) covers the cost of that convenience.
Customers who pay with debit, cash, or prepaid cards pay no surcharge. The fee applies only to credit card transactions.
This isn't new. Gas stations have done it for years with cash vs. credit pricing. Surcharging just makes it available to every business type, whether you use POS terminals in-store or process online.
What Clearo handles
Compliance
We configure your surcharge to comply with Visa and Mastercard network rules. The surcharge percentage is capped at your actual processing cost. You can't charge more than what you pay.
Disclosure
We set up the required signage for your storefront, configure receipt line items to show the surcharge clearly, and make sure your checkout flow communicates the fee before the customer completes the transaction.
Terminal configuration
Your terminals and payment gateway are programmed to apply the surcharge automatically to credit card transactions and exclude debit, prepaid, and cash payments.
Ongoing management
If your processing costs change, your rep adjusts the surcharge percentage to match. You never charge more than your actual cost.
Is surcharging right for your business?
Surcharging works well for businesses where credit card processing fees significantly impact margins, especially professional services, contractors, auto shops, medical offices, and B2B companies with high-ticket transactions.
It's less common in restaurants and retail where customer perception is more sensitive to visible fees. But even there, some businesses implement it successfully with clear communication.
There are restrictions by state. Surcharging isn't permitted in Connecticut, Maine, or Massachusetts, or in Quebec, and other states set their own limits. See the rules for your state or province, and we'll tell you upfront whether it's available in your market.
Not sure? Book a call and we'll walk through the numbers. Request a free statement review and sometimes a different pricing structure (like cost-plus or dual pricing) achieves the same goal without a line-item surcharge.
Read: Credit Card Surcharging Rules by StateSurcharging FAQ
Credit card surcharging is legal in most U.S. states and in Canada outside Quebec. Connecticut, Maine, and Massachusetts prohibit it, Quebec bans fees for paying by card, and some states, such as Colorado, cap it. Visa and Mastercard rules apply everywhere. Clearo will confirm whether surcharging is available in your market before setup.
No. Surcharges can only be applied to credit card transactions under Visa and Mastercard network rules. Debit cards, prepaid cards, and cash transactions cannot be surcharged.
The surcharge cannot exceed your actual cost of accepting the card. In the U.S., Visa caps surcharges at 3% and Mastercard at 4%; in Canada, both cap them at 2.4%. Some states set lower limits. Clearo configures your surcharge to match your processing cost.
You must post signage at the entrance and point of sale and display the surcharge as a separate line item on receipts. For Visa, notify your acquirer at least 30 days before you start. Mastercard's rules also call for advance notice, so ask your processor what each network currently requires. Clearo handles the setup with you.
Surcharging adds a fee to credit card transactions. Dual pricing displays two prices, a cash price and a card price, and lets the customer choose. Both achieve similar cost recovery outcomes. Clearo will recommend the right approach for your business and state.
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Disclaimer: general information, not professional advice
This page is for general educational purposes only. It is not legal, tax, accounting, or financial advice, and reading it does not create a professional or advisory relationship with Clearo Payments. Clearo Payments is a payment processor, not a law firm or an accounting firm.
Payment laws, card network rules, and tax rates differ by state, province, and municipality, and they change. How they apply depends on your business and your processing agreement. Before you act on anything here, such as adding a surcharge, offering a cash discount, or changing how you charge sales tax, confirm the current rules with the official source and consult a qualified professional where you do business, such as a lawyer (or a notary in Quebec), an accountant, or a tax advisor.
We work to keep this information accurate and current, but we cannot guarantee that it is complete or up to date, and we are not responsible for decisions made in reliance on it. See our Terms of Service.
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Is it legal to charge a credit card fee? US and Canada
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