Visa and Mastercard Extend EU Fee Caps for Tourist Cards to 2029

The European Commission announced on Friday that Visa and Mastercard have agreed to extend the caps on tourist card fees set five years ago with EU antitrust regulators until 2029.

Background of the Agreement:

In 2019, Visa and Mastercard, the two largest payment network operators, agreed to a 0.2% fee cap on non-EU debit card payments in shops and a 0.3% cap on credit card payments to settle an EU antitrust investigation and avoid substantial fines.

The initial fee caps were due to expire in November 2024. The extension, volunteered by the companies, will keep inter-regional interchange fees for debit and credit card transactions capped for another five years until November 2029.

Breakdown of Caps:

• Offline Transactions: Debit card fees will remain capped at 0.2% and credit card fees at 0.3%.
• Online Transactions: Debit card fees will remain capped at 1.15% and credit card fees at 1.5%.

Industry Impact and Statements:

Visa emphasized that the extended caps provide market certainty regarding inter-regional interchange rates, noting the fundamental differences between cross-border e-commerce and in-store payments.

Interchange or swipe fees are charges set by Visa and Mastercard to merchants for accepting their debit and credit cards. These fees generate profits for banks and other card issuers.

EU Commission’s Position:

The European Commission, acting as the EU antitrust watchdog, welcomed the voluntary extension but warned that it would investigate if concrete evidence arises showing that the current caps are no longer appropriate.