Key Highlights

  • The cap on interchange for foreign-issued cards starts on 1 April 2027.
  • Domestic card changes took effect on 1 October 2026, about six months earlier.
  • Interchange is a fee between financial institutions rather than one paid directly by travellers.
  • The Australian dollar was 68.78 US cents at 4.00 pm on 11 November 2026.

The Reserve Bank's retail payments reforms left one notable piece for later: a cap on interchange for cards issued overseas, which is scheduled to take effect on 1 April 2027.

Picture a visitor from abroad buying a coffee in Melbourne, a ferry ticket in Sydney or a souvenir in Cairns. They tap a card issued by a bank in their home country, the terminal beeps and the transaction is done. Behind that simple moment sits a chain of fees passed between the institutions that make the payment work. One of those fees, interchange, is the subject of a change the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has set for 1 April 2027.

The RBA's findings from its review of retail payments regulation, published on 31 March 2026, said a cap on interchange for foreign-issued cards and some transparency changes would come into effect "later, on 1 April 2027". That phrase "later" matters, because most of the review's changes did not wait.

A reform in two stages

The review's findings were explicit about timing: "Most of the changes will come into effect on 1 October 2026, including the removal of surcharging and reductions in the interchange caps for domestic card transactions." The headline consumer change, set out in the line "Surcharging on debit and Credit cards should end from 1 October 2026", has therefore already happened.

The structure looks like this:

  • From 1 October 2026: the removal of surcharging on debit and credit cards, and reductions in the interchange caps for domestic card transactions.
  • From 1 April 2027: a cap on interchange for foreign-issued cards, and some transparency changes.
  • Also part of the package: eftpos, Mastercard, Visa and large acquirers must publish the fees they charge.

Splitting the reform in this way means the domestic market has had its changes first, while cards issued overseas follow roughly six months later.

When a card payment is made, several parties are usually involved: the cardholder's bank (the issuer), the business's payment provider (the acquirer) and the card network that links them. Interchange is a fee that passes between these institutions as part of each transaction. It is not normally shown as a separate item on a shopper's receipt, but it forms part of the overall cost a Business pays to accept card payments.

A cap places a ceiling on how high that fee can be. Domestic card transactions already had caps, which were reduced from 1 October. Until the April 2027 change, cards issued outside Australia are the part of the picture where the new cap has not yet applied.

Why foreign-issued cards matter

It is easy to think of foreign card payments as a niche concern. For some businesses they are anything but. Hotels, tour operators, airport retailers, restaurants in tourist precincts and attractions that draw international visitors may process a meaningful share of their card payments on cards issued overseas. International students and temporary residents who keep using a card from their home country add to that flow.

The removal of surcharging from 1 October changed something for these businesses already. Before that date, a business could in some circumstances have added a Surcharge to card payments, including those made on foreign cards. With surcharging on debit and credit cards ended, that option has gone, while the foreign card interchange cap is not yet in place. The April 2027 date is therefore a point that some businesses are likely to have marked in their planning.

For the visitors themselves, the change sits largely out of sight. Interchange is a fee between institutions, and the reform does not alter, in any way described in the RBA's findings, the separate fees an overseas bank might charge its own customer for spending abroad. Travellers wanting to know about those charges would need to look to their own card provider.

Transparency arrives alongside

The 1 April 2027 date does not only cover foreign cards. Separately, the review requires eftpos, Mastercard, Visa and large acquirers to publish the fees they charge.

Transparency measures are designed to make it easier for businesses to see what they are paying and to compare options. For a business with a mix of local and international customers, being able to see fee structures clearly could make it simpler to understand how the foreign card cap affects its own costs once it applies. The precise form of the published information is something to watch as the date approaches.

How this fits the RBA's wider picture

The payments reforms are separate from monetary policy, but they are running at the same time as a period of tighter Interest Rate settings. On 3 November, the RBA's Monetary Policy Board raised the cash rate target by 25 basis points to 4.85 per cent. The Board said it "judged that a further tightening in financial conditions is warranted".

There is also an Exchange Rate angle that tourists may notice, though it is distinct from the card fee issue. As at 4.00 pm on 11 November 2026, the Australian dollar was at 68.78 US cents, 109.20 Japanese yen and 0.6160 euro, according to the RBA website. The trade-weighted index stood at 63.8, below the 65.2 average assumed for 2026 in the November Statement on Monetary Policy. The Statement's financial conditions chapter noted that "the nominal exchange rate has appreciated since the start of the year". Exchange rates move constantly and these figures are a snapshot, not a forecast.

The RBA's Payments System Board, which oversees this area, is scheduled to meet on 19 November 2026.

The bottom line

The RBA chose to phase its retail payments reforms. Surcharging on debit and credit cards ended, and domestic interchange caps were reduced, from 1 October 2026. A cap on interchange for foreign-issued cards, together with some transparency changes, follows on 1 April 2027. For businesses that serve international visitors, that second date completes the picture that began in October. For the visitors, the change happens largely behind the counter, in the fees that pass between the institutions handling each tap.