WEX welcomes the Reserve Bank of Australia’s conclusions on the Review of Merchant Card Payment Costs and Surcharging, announced on 31 March 2026.
These reforms represent a significant evolution in the Australian payments landscape and are designed to improve transparency, simplify payment experiences, and strengthen competition and efficiency across the payments ecosystem.
The key changes include the removal of card surcharging on debit, prepaid and credit cards on the eftpos, Mastercard and Visa debit card networks, together with lower interchange fee caps and enhanced fee transparency requirements for payment service providers. The majority of these reforms will come into effect from 1 October 2026, with additional measures relating to foreign card interchange caps and further transparency requirements commencing from 1 April 2027.
For our customers in the travel sector, we see this as a positive development.
The removal of surcharging is expected to reduce friction in card acceptance and create a more consistent payment environment across Australia. For businesses using virtual card and modern B2B payment solutions, this creates a meaningful opportunity to unlock broader supplier acceptance at scale, particularly across complex travel payment ecosystems involving agencies, airlines, hotels and intermediaries.
At WEX, we believe these reforms support a stronger foundation for the continued adoption of secure virtual card payments, helping our customers benefit from streamlined settlement, improved reconciliation, enhanced fraud controls, and greater working capital flexibility.
Importantly, we expect the changes to support wider acceptance of card-based B2B payments by reducing historic barriers associated with surcharge recovery. This has the potential to accelerate adoption across supplier networks and improve payment consistency across booking, ticketing and settlement workflows.
Our priority is to help customers navigate this transition with confidence.
Over the coming months, WEX will continue to monitor the implementation of the reforms, engage closely with industry stakeholders, and provide guidance on what these changes mean for your business, supplier acceptance strategy, and payment operations.
Customers can expect proactive communication from WEX as implementation milestones approach, including updates on regulatory timelines, market impacts, and any actions required to optimise your payment programs.
We remain committed to delivering secure, scalable and commercially effective payment solutions that help travel businesses operate with greater efficiency and confidence in an evolving market.
The information in this release is for educational purposes only. It is not legal or tax advice. The RBA’s Conclusions Paper is available here and provides further specifics on the reforms. For legal or tax advice, you should consult your own legal counsel, tax, and investment advisers.
