Each State’s Laws on Charging for Credit Card Purchases

By Phillip Parker

Last Updated: June 7, 2023

You might be thinking about adding credit card surcharges. Find out here if it is legal to charge customers for credit card use in your state. Keep in mind that you if your customers are in a different state than your business, it may be unclear which state’s laws you are required to comply with. In such cases, we recommend consulting a legal advisor familiar with credit card surcharging laws. Also, be sure to check out our article, “Charging Customers to Use Credit Cards is a Bad Idea” to better understand how doing so can harm your business. Also, keep in mind that Visa is imposing $5,000 fines for the first offense of improper surcharging.

States Where Credit Card Surcharge Fees are Prohibited:

Connecticut
- Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection
Massachusetts
- Mass.gov
- 193rd General Court of Massachusetts

States with Stipulations Regarding Credit Card Surcharging

Colorado (maximum of 2% of the sale amount)
- Colorado General Assembly

States That Allow Credit Card Surcharging

The following states allow credit card surcharges according to card brand policies:

Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
California
Colorado
Delaware
Florida
Georgia
Hawaii
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Wyoming

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About The Author

Phillip Parker

Phillip Parker is an independent card payment expert specializing U.S. and Canadian point-of-sale, e-commerce, and mobile payment acceptance. He has nearly two decades of experience in credit card processing as a journalist and consultant. Phillip is the creator of this website and has written over 1,500 articles covering numerous payment acceptance topics. He has also published critical reviews about most merchant services providers currently in operation.

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Phillip has consulted businesses of all sizes from mom-and-pop shops processing $10K per month to enterprise level organizations processing in excess of $300MM annually. His specialties include:

– Merchant Account Statement Auditing

– Rate & Fee Negotiation

– Processor & POS Selection

– Software Integrations

– Risk Assessment

– Fraud Prevention

– General Processing Advice

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Phillip has researched and reviewed over 1,000 merchant services providers over the last 15 years. He also owns multiple businesses that accept credit card payments. If you are looking for an ethical credit card processor that doesn’t hide fees or lock you into expensive contracts, see Phillip’s merchant account picks here.

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