Accept Visa
Why It’s Good Business To Accept Visa Credit Cards
Does your business need to accept Visa credit card payments in Canada?
Building a successful business in today’s challenging economy means you need to optimize every single opportunity. We understand how hard you work to provide top-notch value and best-in-class service to your customers, but are you giving them the most convenient payment options?
Benefits Of Accepting Visa Cards
Whether you’re a new business or an established enterprise, accepting Visa will have a big impact on your bottom line. Some of the most significant benefits of accepting Visa include:
- Increased Sales
Consumers spend more when they’re not constrained by cash on hand. You may see increased purchases of higher-margin products as well as specialty items. And customers may visit your store more often. - Customer Satisfaction
Your customers will appreciate the fact that you allow them the flexibility to pay the way they want to pay—including by credit, debit or prepaid cards. Happier customers are more loyal customers. - Speed of Checkout
You’ll speed your customers through checkout with rapid electronic payment. No more counting change or waiting while customers write cheques. - Improved Efficiency
Electronic card transactions can save you time and money by minimizing cash handling and payment reconciliation, giving you more time to do more important things—like managing and growing your business. - Safety
With lower volumes of cash, you’re less vulnerable to theft and pilfering. - Simple Currency Conversion
Electronic payments on Visa credit cards are settled in the currency in which you sell your goods and services, regardless of where the Cardholder is from. If you sell in US or Canadian dollars, that’s how you’ll be paid.
What is the Visa Interchange?
Interchange is the fee collected by the customer’s credit card bank (the Visa card-issuer) on every transaction. These rates are set by Visa every year and apply to all processors. In other words, this is the true cost that the processor has to pay on every transaction. The interchange rates are part of our Cost+ pricing program. The tables below provide a breakdown of the current Visa interchange rates.
Visa Canada Interchange Rates
Card Type
Interchange Rate
Card Present
Swipe/Chip Consumer
1.420%
Swipe/Chip Infinite
1.610%
Swipe/Chip Corporate
1.900 %
Swipe/Chip Infinite Privilege
2.080 %
Keyed
Keyed Consumer
1.520 %
Keyed Premium
1.710 %
Keyed Corporate
2.00%
Keyed Infinite Privilege
2.450 %
Recurring Payments
Recurring Consumer
1.370 %
Recurring Infinite
1.560 %
Recurring Corporate
1.850 %
Recurring Infinite Privilege
1.950 %
Emerging Markets/Charities
Swipe/Chip/Keyed Consumer
0.980 %
Swipe/Chip/Keyed Infinite
1.170 %
Swipe/Chip/Keyed Corporate
1.800 %
Swipe/Chip/Keyed Infinite Privilege
1.950 %
Gas and Service Stations
Swipe/Chip Consumer
1.180 %
Swipe/Chip Infinite
1.370 %
Swipe/Chip Corporate
1.800 %
Swipe/Chip Infinite Privilege
1.950 %
Groceries and Supermarkets
Groceries and Supermarkets
Swipe/Chip Consumer
1.330 %
Swipe/Chip Infinite
1.520 %
Swipe/Chip Corporate
1.850 %
Swipe/Chip Infinite Privilege
1.950 %
Level 2 Data
Corporate & Purchasing
1.600 %
Fuel Purchasing Cards
1.800 %
Level 3 Data
Corporate & Purchasing
1.400 %
Large Ticket $7,000 – $15,000
1.300 % + $35
Large Ticket $15,000 – $50,000
1.200% + $35
Large Ticket $50,000+
1.100% + $35
Debit Card Type
Interchange Rate
Card Present
Debit Retail
0.250 % + 5¢
Debit Grocery
0.150 % + 5¢
Debit Gas Station
0.150 % + 5¢
Keyed
Debit Keyed
1.150 %
Recurring Payments
Debit Recurring
0.600 %
Emerging Markets/Charities
Debit Emerging Market
0.300 %
Assessments and Association Fees
Visa Card Brand
0.1017 %
Visa International Cross-Border Card Present (CAD)
0.452 %
Visa International Cross-Border – Keyed (CAD)
0.9605 %
Visa International Cross-Border (USD)
0.9020 %
* HST is charged to the acquirer/processor on network card-brand, association and cross-border fees. Visa listed card-brand fees is 0.080% respectively. Because this is an absorbed cost by the acquirer who are not allowed to claim ITCs in Canada, the HST on the card-brand fee cannot be used as an ITC by the merchant. Does not apply to interchange, per transaction or cost+ fees. Below are list to the official Visa and MasterCard interchange tables.
