
Thanks to the thousands of people who signed the petition calling for fee-free digital payments, The RBA is conducting a review into payment surcharges.
You can read my submission to the review here:
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Fee Free for Business.
Fee Free for Customers.
Canstar analysis has revealed that Australians are paying $4 billion a year just to use their own money. Every time you tap your card, banks, payment platforms and card providers take a cut. It’s unfair, and it needs to change.
Small businesses also pay significantly more than big businesses in fees, with many forced to surcharge to remain competitive.
75% of us use digital payments because they are safe and efficient, with most Australians choosing debit cards. The technology for fee-free payments exists today, but the banks and software providers aren’t providing solutions for this out the checkout.
With the RBA conducting a surcharge review, and with new legislation before Parliament, I need you to sign my petition so the RBA and Parliament know that enough is enough.
In 2024 and beyond, fee-free digital payments should be the norm, not an exception.
Together, let’s end this rort.
Sign Petition
About the Campaign
The Fee-Free Digital Payments campaign aims to promote the adoption of digital payment methods without additional transaction fees.
It focuses on raising awareness, driving adoption among small businesses, and supporting financial inclusion by making debit card and digital payment options more accessible and affordable.
With the Reserve Bank of Australia conducting a payments surcharge review, we are working to ensure that businesses and consumers get a fair outcome following the review.

Resources
Display your support for Fee Free Digital in your business by helping this campaign grow across Australia.
In the Media
Listen to Broadcasts
- Westpac Surcharge Discussion on 3AW Mornings - September 2, 2024
- 3AW Mornings - News Discussion - September 2, 2024
- 2SM 16:00 News - Discussion on RBA, Cash-Free Businesses, and Albanese's Comments - September 6, 2024
- 2GB Drive Program - Discussion on Bank Payments and QR Codes - August 20, 2024
- 2GB Drive - Discussion on Government and Merchant Fees - August 20, 2024
- Channel 10 News First - Discussion on Bank Fees and Surcharges - August 23, 2024
- Perth Live on 6PR - Discussion on Bank Fees and Cash Policies with Jerome - August 22, 2024
- ABC Radio Brisbane Mornings - Senate Discussion on Surcharge Policies - August 26, 2024
- ABC News Afternoon Briefing - Discussion on RBA Digital Payment Policies - August 26, 2024
- ABC News Afternoon Briefing - Government's Role in Bank Costs and Savings - August 27, 2024
- SBS World News Australia - Discussion on Rort and Appropriate Descriptions - August 29, 2024
- 10 News First on Channel 10 - Analysis of Commonwealth Bank's Cash Costs - August 29, 2024
- 6PR Perth Live - Friday Discussion and Day Events - August 30, 2024
- ABC News - Analysis of Cash Costs and Digital Banking Options - August 30, 2024
- ABC News - House of Representatives Coverage - August 29, 2024
- ABC News - Analysis of Cash Payment Costs and Bank Policies - August 29, 2024
- ABC News Afternoon Briefing - Insights on RBA Digital Currency Strategy - August 26, 2024
OCT 15, 2024

Government seeks to ban debit card payment surcharges from 2026
OCT 15, 2024

Surcharge crackdown to cost consumers more, Coalition says
OCT 15, 2024

Review of Merchant Card Payment Costs and Surcharging
The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) is commencing its Review into Retail Payments Regulation. This review will examine the costs merchants face when accepting card payments and the framework for surcharging.
OCT 15, 2024

Federal government promises to crack down on card surcharges by 2026
The federal government says it is prepared to ban debit card surcharges from January 1, 2026, subject to a review underway by the Reserve Bank.
OCT 15, 2024

Cash v debit card fees: There is no free lunch
OCT 15, 2024

Shoppers to no longer pay fees when using debit cards under new Albanese government plan
OCT 15, 2024

Labor to ban debit card payment surcharges by the end of next year
OCT 10, 2024

Bennelong MP Jerome Laxale calls on RBA to ban surcharges of debit payments
A Sydney MP has called on the Reserve Bank (RBA) to nix surcharges on card transactions and tap-and-go phone payments, launching a petition to overhaul the pesky fee that costs Aussies $4bn a year.
OCT 10, 2024

Canberra asked to urgently tackle greedy card fees
A list of initiatives to reduce the cost of living were presented to the Government in Canberra today, aiming to slash the price of items purchased on billions of debit card payments at Aussie businesses, and significantly reduce surcharging.
SEP 25, 2024

Apple, Google respond to payment cost heat by backing eftpos
SEP 20, 2024

The ‘loophole’ that means businesses can slug Aussie consumers with card surcharges at checkouts all the time
AUG 23, 2024

MICHAEL USHER: Tap-and-go surcharges are robbing us blind, how are we not enraged?
We’re being robbed blind again by the banks and big financial institutions, and we all seem to be accepting it without an argument.
SEP 14, 2024

Opaque and complicated’ card surcharges are costing Australians billions. Is an overhaul needed?
SEP 3, 2024

Tradie's simple trick to avoid common $10 surcharge: 'Don't do that'
SEP 3, 2024
Brad Kelly
Managing Director – Payment Services
Banning surcharges outright does NOT fix the problem of excessive merchant fees charged by Banks and payment providers.
Instead, it shifts the burden to small businesses equivalent to a tax of $1.7Bn. Have you noticed that Coles, Woolworths and other large retailers don’t surcharge?
SEP 5, 2024

Effie Zahos tackled card fees and surcharging this morning on the Today Show.
Effie pointed out that small businesses are paying a lot more than big business for basic debit card payments which are used by the vast majority of Aussie consumers – “the new cash”.
SEP 6, 2024

Surcharges are added to most purchases, but what are the rules behind these extra fees?
SEP 6, 2024

Why Aussies cop fees, banned overseas, to pay by card
SEP 6, 2024

Why you pay $5.08 for a $5 coffee
AUG 20, 2024

Labor MP kicks off campaign for fee-free digital payment reform
Jerome Laxale, the Labor MP for Bennelong and a member of the House Economics Committee yesterday announced the beginning of a “campaign for fee-free digital payment reform.”
For now Laxale is teasing his colleagues and the industry as to the methods he will employ and who his allies are.
AUG 22, 2024

Big four banks to face scrutiny over small business transaction fees
Australia’s big four banks will face parliamentary scrutiny next week, with both Labor and Coalition lawmakers set to demand answers about the card payment fees levelled on small businesses.
AUG 22, 2024

Card payment surcharge billions under RBA microscope
The Reserve Bank may be compelled to follow the UK and Europe and ban credit and debit card payment surcharges, as the billions of dollars in fees paid by Australians each year attracts closer political scrutiny.
AUG 23, 2024

Banks gouging $4 billion from customers for cashless transaction fees: MP
The nation’s large banks and providers of credit and debit cards have been accused by a Labor MP of paying themselves “kickbacks” that are costing consumers $4 billion a year through surcharges imposed on small business operators.
AUG 23, 2024

Banks gouging $4 billion from customers for cashless transaction fees: MP
The nation’s large banks and providers of credit and debit cards have been accused by a Labor MP of paying themselves “kickbacks” that are costing consumers $4 billion a year through surcharges imposed on small business operators.
AUG 23, 2024

Time To Ban Credit And Debit Card Surcharges in Oz?
AUG 26, 2024

RBA ramps up surcharge review amid growing consumer and political pressure
AUG 27, 2024

Push to stamp out $4 billion card surcharge ‘rort’ hitting Aussies: 'Cash is fee free'
Aussies are paying billions of dollars a year in surcharges to use their card or other cashless methods to make payments. One politician hopes to make this “rort” a thing of the past and is calling for fee-free digital payments.
AUG 29, 2024

Australia's CBA chief blasts MP for 'misinformation' on card payment charges
AUG 29, 2024

Mastercard argues cash costs more than card in bid to stymie fee limit
30 August 2024

Major banks push to abolish 'outrageous' charge for Aussies: '$4b nightmare'
AUG 30, 2024

Evolving rapidly”: Fintechs Tyro and Zeller say merchants want more than simple card processing
AUG 30, 2024

Bank boss outraged by 10pc transaction fee for coffee
The chief executives of the country’s largest banks say they support a push to ban debit and credit card surcharges, arguing they are opaque and that the fees charged to merchants should be considered part of the normal cost of running a business
AUG 30, 2024

Commonwealth Bank boss called out over an issue that hits every Aussie
The boss of Australia’s biggest bank has angrily denied ripping off customers with card payment fees – as the nation increasingly moves towards becoming a cashless society.
Media Requests
Authorised by J Laxale, ALP, 32 Beecroft Road Epping NSW 2121