Quick answer
Cafes and restaurants often have high card usage, small average transactions and tight margins. Before 1 October 2026, model the effect of lost surcharge recovery, check terminal and POS fees, ask providers for written post-change pricing and decide whether menu prices or payment-method incentives need to change.
Why hospitality should act early
A busy venue can process thousands of card transactions each month. Even a small percentage-point gap between current surcharge recovery and future merchant fees can become a material annual margin impact. FeeReady is designed to turn that abstract rule change into a concrete dollar estimate.
Worked cafe example
Take a sample cafe with $85,000 monthly sales excluding GST, 82% card sales, about 2,100 monthly transactions and a $40 average ticket. If the business currently recovers some card costs through surcharging, then a no-surcharge environment may require one or more offsets: lower provider fees, menu-price changes, or a preferred-payment discount strategy.
| Input to check | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Card-sales share | Higher card mix means more of the venue’s revenue is exposed to merchant fees. |
| Average transaction value | Low-ticket venues feel per-transaction and terminal fees more sharply. |
| Current surcharge recovery | This is the revenue stream that may no longer be available under network no-surcharge rules. |
| Provider quote after October 2026 | Do not assume interchange reductions automatically equal lower total merchant service fees. |
30-minute venue audit
- Download the last three merchant statements and POS fee invoices.
- Calculate card sales as a percentage of total sales for dine-in, takeaway and online ordering.
- Separate percentage merchant fees from fixed transaction, gateway and terminal fees.
- List every place customers see surcharge wording: menu, counter signage, online checkout, QR ordering and receipts.
- Run a FeeReady scenario using current rates, then a second scenario using a written provider quote.
- Decide whether changes should be absorbed, reflected in menu prices, or managed through preferred-payment incentives.
Questions to ask your provider
- What will my blended merchant rate be from 1 October 2026?
- Will lower interchange caps be passed through automatically, and on what date?
- Do card-present, QR ordering and online ordering attract different fees?
- Are terminal rental, gateway and monthly minimum fees changing?
- What POS setting changes are required if surcharges are removed?
Customer and staff communication checklist
Prepare wording for menus, counter signage, online checkout, booking deposits and staff scripts. Keep it factual: explain that payment costs have been reviewed and that prices or discounts are being adjusted as part of the 2026 card-payment rule change. Avoid legal conclusions unless confirmed by your provider or adviser.
Shareable cafe worksheet
For community posts or team planning, use the dedicated print-friendly worksheet. It gives cafe owners a short statement-gathering checklist and provider email prompts.
Model this in the FeeReady calculatorUse the small-business checklist