New rule allowing businesses to charge credit card fees won't apply in Quebec
New regulations allowing businesses in Canada to pass credit card fees onto customers will not apply in Quebec.
The measure is prohibited by the province's Consumer Protection Act, according to the Canadian Federation of Independent Businesses (CFIB), but elsewhere in Canada, the rule officially takes effect on Thursday.
However, since businesses will need time to adapt their payment systems, consumers may not be affected until early November.
The rule is the product of a multimillion-dollar class-action settlement involving Visa and Mastercard over so-called "swipe fees" that cut into business profits.
The fees range from one to three per cent and are highest for cards with loyalty perks such as cashback rewards and points-earning systems.
"In the end, it’s the small and medium-sized business owners that pay for the points of consumers," said Francois Vincent, the CFIB’s vice-president for Quebec.
Vincent said it’s a financial burden that is increasingly difficult for businesses to shoulder, especially small retailers.
"In a medium-sized grocery store you can have 1,000, 2,000 transactions a year. It can cost $200,000 in fees to a giant company and less than $10,000 for debit transactions," he said.
Should they sign up, merchants would be permitted to charge an additional fee to consumers at the point of sale to make up for the loss.
Vincent said the charge has been capped at 2.4 per cent of the purchase price. He said shoppers could always opt to use a debit card or cash to complete their purchase to avoid the fee, though they'll miss out on any perks the card offers.
QUEBEC BUSINESSES SHUT OUT
According to a CFIB survey, only 19 per cent of businesses in the nine other provinces would opt to charge customers a credit card fee.
Still, Vincent said even if the fee isn’t very popular at the moment, all provinces should be governed by the same regulations.
He points out that business owners in Ottawa will be permitted to charge a fee if they choose, while merchants across the river in Gatineau, Que. are prohibited from doing the same.
"We are living in Canada and why could some businesses in the rest of the country have the possibility that retailers or small businesses in Quebec would not have?" he said.
To that end, the CFIB intends to meet with Quebec’s new justice minister and ask for an update to the province's Consumer Protection Act to level the playing field.
"Businesses don’t want to put that surcharge on the customers," but the reality of small business owners — now grappling with inflation, high payroll taxes, and rents — also needs to be taken into account, he said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
What is a 'halal mortgage'? Does it make housing more accessible?
The 2024 federal budget announced on April 16 included plans to introduce “halal mortgages” as a way to increase access to home ownership.
Here's where Canadians are living abroad: report
A recent report sheds light on Canadians living abroad--estimated at around four million people in 2016—and the public policies that impact them.
Deadly six-vehicle crash on Highway 400 sparked by road rage incident
One person was killed in a six-vehicle crash on Highway 400 in Innisfil Friday evening.
'We are declaring our readiness': No decision made yet as Poland declares it's ready to host nuclear weapons
Polish President Andrzej Duda says while no decision has been made around whether Poland will host nuclear weapons as part of an expansion of the NATO alliance’s nuclear sharing program, his country is willing and prepared to do so.
Invasive and toxic hammerhead worms make themselves at home in Ontario
Ontario is now home to an invasive and toxic worm species that can grow up to three feet long and can be dangerous to small animals and pets.
Harvey Weinstein hospitalized after return to New York from upstate prison
Harvey Weinstein’s lawyer said Saturday that the onetime movie mogul has been hospitalized for a battery of tests after his return to New York City following an appeals court ruling nullifying his 2020 rape conviction.
Opinion I just don't get Taylor Swift
It's one thing to say you like Taylor Swift and her music, but don't blame CNN's AJ Willingham's when she says she just 'doesn't get' the global phenomenon.
Central Alberta queer groups react to request from Red Deer-South to reinstate Jennifer Johnson to UCP caucus
A number of LGBQT+2s groups in Central Alberta are pushing back against a request from the Red Deer South UCP constituency to reinstate MLA Jennifer Johnson into the UCP caucus.
Mookie Betts leads Dodgers past Blue Jays 4-2; Toronto drops fifth consecutive game
Mookie Betts went 3 for 5, including a triple and an RBI single, as the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Toronto Blue Jays 4-2 on Saturday.