Archived - Consultation on Reducing Credit Card Transaction Fees

Current status: Closed

In Budget 2021, the government announced consultations to further reduce credit card transaction fees.

This engagement process gave all interested members of the public the opportunity to provide input on this topic.  The consultation ran from August 4, 2021 to December 2, 2021.  Thank you to everyone who participated.

Key questions for consideration

This consultation sought feedback in support of three objectives:

• lowering the average overall cost of interchange fees for merchants;
• ensuring that small businesses benefit from pricing that is similar to large businesses; and
• protecting existing rewards points of consumers.

What's next?

Next steps will be detailed in the next economic update, including legislative amendments to the Payment Card Networks Act that would provide authority to regulate interchange fees, if necessary. While this formal consultation has now concluded, Canadians are welcome to share their ideas and comments with the Department of Finance at any time.

Related links

• Government launches consultations on reducing credit card transaction fees
• Budget 2021: A Recovery Plan for Jobs, Growth and Resilience
• New Agreements to Deliver Lower Credit Card Costs for Small and Medium-Sized Businesses (2018)
• Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC) Contact Information
• Code of Conduct for the Credit and Debit Card Industry in Canada
• Payment Card Networks Act