Every coach who takes card payments has asked it: can I pass the card fees on to my clients? For years the honest answer was "it depends where you are". Since 1 October 2026 the answer for Australian coaches has changed. The Reserve Bank of Australia has removed surcharging on debit, prepaid and credit cards on the eftpos, Mastercard and Visa networks.
That sounds like coaches now have to eat the fees. They don't. There's a difference between a surcharge and a price, and once you see it, the fix is a pricing decision you make once.
The short answer
You can cover card fees, but in most places you can't add them as a separate surcharge. Australia removed card surcharges on Visa, Mastercard and eftpos from 1 October 2026, and the UK and EU have banned them on consumer cards since 2018. The RBA says payment costs "can be reflected in a business's overall pricing". So set one all-inclusive price and stop itemising the card fee.
What changed in Australia on 1 October 2026?
The RBA published the conclusions of its review of merchant card payment costs in March 2026. From 1 October 2026, surcharging is removed on debit, prepaid and credit cards on the three designated networks: eftpos, Mastercard and Visa. According to the RBA's FAQ, American Express, PayPal and UnionPay have also decided to remove surcharging. There's no small-business exemption.
Two lines in that FAQ matter most for coaches:
- Payment costs "can be reflected in a business's overall pricing, rather than charged as a separate surcharge."
- "Businesses can continue to offer discounts for particular payment methods."
The card networks enforce the rules, not the RBA. A client who's charged a surcharge can complain to the business, to the card network or to their state consumer protection agency, and misleading price displays can go to the ACCC. Interchange caps also fell on 1 October, and a second round, including lower caps on foreign cards, follows on 1 April 2027. Over time that should bring card costs down for small businesses, coaches included.
What's the difference between a surcharge and an all-inclusive price?
A surcharge is an extra amount added because the client pays by card. "Coaching $200, plus 2% card fee" is a surcharge. "Coaching $205" is a price. Both might leave you with the same money. Only the first is a separate charge for the payment method.
That's why the change is less dramatic than it sounds. Your costs haven't stopped being part of your price. Rent, software, insurance and card fees have always been built into what you charge. The rule only stops you listing one of those costs as a separate line the client pays because of how they pay.
Where else are card surcharges banned?
| Where | Consumer card surcharges | Since |
|---|---|---|
| Australia | Removed on Visa, Mastercard and eftpos debit, prepaid and credit | 1 October 2026 |
| United Kingdom | Banned on consumer credit and debit cards and many e-payments | 13 January 2018 |
| European Union and EEA | Banned on consumer cards covered by the interchange caps | January 2018 |
| United States | Varies by state and card network. Debit card surcharges aren't allowed, and some states ban credit card surcharges | Ongoing |
The UK rule sits in the Consumer Rights (Payment Surcharges) Regulations 2012, as amended in 2018, and covers payment services like PayPal as well as cards. The EU ban comes from Article 62(4) of the revised Payment Services Directive. In the US, the card networks cap credit card surcharges, require disclosure, and several states go further. If you coach from the US, check your state's rules and your payment processor's terms before adding anything.
None of this is legal advice. If you're unsure, your accountant or your payment provider can confirm what applies to your business.
So how do coaches cover card fees now?
Price for them. Work out what you want to receive per client, then set a single, round, all-inclusive price that covers the fees. The client sees one number. You never mention a card fee, because there isn't one: there's just your price.
In QuickCoach Client Billing, every package has a "Card fees" setting with two options:
- Built into the price. QuickCoach raises the client's price to cover its platform fee and an estimate of Stripe's fee, so you receive about the price you set. Your client sees and pays one package price.
- Taken from your payout. Your client pays exactly the price you set, and both fees come out of what you receive.
Both produce a single price at checkout. The catch with "Built into the price" is that the number it produces is rarely round. A quarterly package priced at A$450 becomes A$509.68 on Free at Stripe's Australian domestic rate of 1.65% + A$0.30. A price like that tells the client a fee has been added. Most coaches are better off choosing the round number themselves.
The round-number method
Pick the round price just above what "Built into the price" would give, then set the package to "Taken from your payout". You keep slightly more than your target, and the client sees a clean number.
| Target: A$450 a quarter | On Free (10%) | On Pro (3.5%) |
|---|---|---|
| Round price you set | A$510.00 | A$475.00 |
| QuickCoach platform fee | A$51.00 | A$16.63 |
| Stripe fee (1.65% + A$0.30) | A$8.72 | A$8.14 |
| You receive | A$450.28 | A$450.23 |
Notice the A$35 gap between the two plans. Client Billing is optional: 10% on Free or 3.5% on Pro when you use it. When you can't add a surcharge, the platform fee lands either in your client's price or in your margin. If you bill a few clients through Client Billing, Pro often pays for itself for that reason alone.
Watch the overseas cards
International cards cost more. On an Australian Stripe account they run 3.5% + A$0.30 against 1.65% + A$0.30 for domestic cards, and Stripe notes that the international rate drops from 1 April 2027, in line with the RBA's second stage. If a good share of your roster is overseas, and plenty of coaching crosses borders, price those packages from the higher rate.
Can I offer a cheaper price for bank transfer?
In Australia, yes, framed the right way. The RBA's FAQ says businesses "can continue to offer discounts for particular payment methods". So "Coaching A$475 a quarter, or A$460 by bank transfer" is a discount. "Coaching A$460, plus A$15 if you pay by card" is a surcharge. The money is identical. The framing isn't.
Before you offer a discount, weigh what card billing gives you: automatic subscriptions, no chasing, and a record of every payment against the client. Plenty of coaches find the time saved is worth more than the fee. You don't have to move everyone either. You can keep billing some clients by bank transfer and charge others through Client Billing, and the platform fee only applies when you get paid through Client Billing.
What should I change this week?
- Check your price list and website. Remove any "plus card fee" or "card payments incur a surcharge" wording if you coach from Australia, the UK or the EU.
- Reprice to round, all-inclusive numbers. Use the round-number method above, your own sums from how much to charge for online coaching, or the coaching rate calculator.
- Update your packages. Packages in Client Billing can't be edited, so create the new ones and archive the old. Existing subscribers keep paying the old price until you move them across.
- Tell existing clients plainly. If the visible price goes up because a fee is now included, say so in one line. Most clients prefer one honest number.
The mechanics of packages, links and payouts are in our Client Billing launch post, and the Help Center explains who covers the fees on each package.
Frequently asked questions
Can I charge my clients a card surcharge in Australia?
Not on Visa, Mastercard or eftpos cards from 1 October 2026. The Reserve Bank of Australia removed surcharging on debit, prepaid and credit cards on those networks, and American Express, PayPal and UnionPay also decided to remove it. You can still cover card costs inside your overall price.
Is it legal to build card fees into my coaching price?
Yes, in Australia the RBA says payment costs can be reflected in a business's overall pricing rather than charged as a separate surcharge. The price your client sees is simply your price. What you can't do in Australia, the UK or the EU is add a separate fee for paying by consumer card.
Can I give a discount for paying by bank transfer?
In Australia, the RBA's FAQ says businesses can continue to offer discounts for particular payment methods. Present it as a discount on your standard price, not as a fee for paying by card. Rules differ in other countries, so check locally.
Are card surcharges banned in the UK?
For consumer cards, yes. Since January 2018, UK businesses can't charge consumers extra for paying by credit or debit card or by many electronic methods such as PayPal. Commercial cards are treated differently, but most coaching clients pay with personal cards.
What does Built into the price mean in QuickCoach Client Billing?
It's a package setting that raises your client's price to cover the QuickCoach platform fee and an estimate of Stripe's fee, so you receive about the price you set. Your client sees and pays one package price. The other option, Taken from your payout, charges exactly your price and takes both fees from what you receive.
Rules are current as of October 2026, from the Reserve Bank of Australia's March 2026 conclusions and FAQ, the UK Consumer Rights (Payment Surcharges) Regulations 2012 and the EU's revised Payment Services Directive. Stripe rates are from Stripe's published Australian pricing. This article is general information, not legal or tax advice. Questions about Client Billing? Reach us at support@quickcoach.fit.
