Fiserv Credit Card Processing Fees & Updates (2024)

FISERV regularly updates its interchange fees for credit and debit card processing. Our team at Merchant Cost Consulting keeps a close eye on those updates and publishes them for our readers to stay informed, so you’re not surprised when changes appear on your merchant account statement.

In addition to the fee history shown below, you can also refer to our Fiserv review for our insider take on this processor. 

Fiserv Notified Merchants About Upcoming EBT Chip Cards in California for 2025

In a November 2024 notice, Fiserv is making merchants aware that California will be issuing EBT chip cards in 2025. Here’s how merchants can prepare.

If you’re using software from an ISV to accept EBT cards in California, you’ll need to contact them directly to see if you need to do anything differently in order to process these payments. If you’re using a Clover terminal or POS to accept EBT cards, Fiserv will contact you directly if any further action is required.

Magnetic stripe cards will still be supported and accepted, but chip technology is still encouraged for EBT transactions.

Fiserv Rate Increases – Effective November 2024

Effective November 1, 2024, Fiserv is passing through Visa’s Account Name Inquiry (ANI) Fee to merchants at the new rate of $0.10, up from the previous rate of $0.05.

This applies to account name inquiry requests to Visa that return an unusable result. 

Fiserv Rate Increases – Effective October 2024

Fiserv notified merchants of several fee changes and increases for October 2024. There are four different categories for these updates, which I’ve summarized for you below.

New Visa Interchange Categories and Rates

Effective October 19, 2024, Visa is rolling out new interchange fees that will be passed through to merchants using Fiserv. Here’s a quick summary of those new rates:

• Commercial Choice 107 – 2.50% 
• Commercial Choice 108 – 2.75% 
• Commercial Choice 110 – 3.00%
• Small Merchant Supermarket Traditional – 1.50% + $0.07
• Small Merchant Supermarket Traditional Rewards – 1.50% + $0.07
• Small Merchant Supermarket Signature – 1.65% + $0.07
• Small Merchant Supermarket Preferred – 2.00% + $0.07
• Small Merchant Supermarket Infinite (Non-qualified Spend) – 1.65% + $0.07
• Small Merchant Supermarket Infinite (Qualified Spend) – 2.00% + $0.07

Visa is also updating its interchange program for Global B2B Virtual Payments and Flexible Rate B2B Virtual Payments. 

Additionally, Fuel and Fleet merchants will see updated purchase field information to authorize multiple types of fuel codes (like partial or full). Fleet MCC codes will no longer qualify for corporate credit non-travel service Level 3 and purchasing credit non-travel service Level 3 programs. 

New Interlink Fees

Effective October 18, 2024, Interlink is introducing new fees increasing some existing fees. Here’s a summary of what to expect.

• New Commercial Solutions Fee of 0.01% from Interlink (applies to all acquired POS volume from transactions made with business solutions products). 
• Interlink is charging a $0.10 fee for each authorization attempt after an issuer never approve decline code. 
• New 0.0075% fee from Interlink on all settled transactions, with a $0.0075 minimum, for “performance and security of the ecosystem.”
• New Visa Risk Integrity Program (VRIP) Fee of $0.10 per transaction and 0.0010% of al volume.  

In addition to these fees, Interlink is also rolling out a new pre-arbitration policy for card-not-present transactions. They are applying a $5 fee for each pre-arbitration remedy request made by the merchant, which is charged if the request is rejected by Visa. 

Debit Network Annual Fee Increases

There are two debit network annual fee increases from Fiserv that will both appear on October 2024 statements. Here’s a breakdown of the old rates, new rates, and Fiserv’s fee (which includes a markup).

These annual fees are charged per active merchant account location (physical address or domain name) with any terminal that’s processed a STAR PIN or ACCEL PIN debit transaction between June 1, 2024 and August 31, 2024. 

New Card Network Pass-Through Fees

Some merchants may notice new pass-through fees coming directly from the card networks (Visa, Mastercard, American Express, and Discover) on October 2024 statements. 

The card brands have also announced changes to interchanges rates for October, that will also change the rates for different transaction categories for merchants using Fiserv. 

Based on these card network changes, Fiserv may be downgrading certain transactions for businesses on a qualified rate plan.

New Fiserv Fees and Updates Effective August 2024

Effective August 1, 2024, Fiserv notified clients of a pass-through fee increase from Mastercard.

The Mastercard License Fee is increasing to 0.011% on total gross processing volume per statement period, up from the old rate of 0.008%.

If you’re getting processing from Fiserv through a third-party ISO or banking partner, you may also be charged an annual fee in August or September. This rate can vary, but we just saw a statement from PNC Merchant Services where they charged a $109.95 annual fee to a client using Fiserv. 

Also effective August 1, 2024 is a new Visa Digital Credential Update (VDCU) Fee of $0.12 for network tokens. It applies whenever the token network is used for authorization requests following any credentialing updates (such as altered PANs, card replacement, changed expiration, etc.). 

Merchants using Fiserv should also be aware of a brand new sign-in experience for account management, which was rolled out on August 26, 2024. You can optionally use Fiserv’s new passkey feature to log into your account, but your current username and passwords will still work for signing in. 

Fiserv Interchange Rate Increase Effective April 2024

In a recent notice to merchants, Fiserv announced new and increased pass-through fees that go into effect starting with April 2024 statements:

• Visa Commercial Assessment Fee – 0.01%
• Visa High Integrity Risk Fee – $0.10 per transaction
• Visa High Integrity Risk – 0.10% of total volume for select high risk MCC codes**
• Visa Account Name Inquiry Fee – $0.05 to $0.10 per account inquiry performed for zero verifications
• Mastercard Mail/Telephone Order Fee – 0.015%
• Mastercard Network Access and Brand Usage (NABU) Fee – $0.0295
• Mastercard Digital Enablement Fee for CNP Transactions $1,000 or more – $0.40
• Mastercard Dues and Assessments for Transactions Less Than $1,000 – 0.14%
• Mastercard Dues and Assessments for Transactions $1,000 or More – 0.15%
• Interlink Magnetic Stripe Data Contactless Transactions (POS Entry Code 91) – $0.10

**Visa’s High Integrity Risk Fee applies to specific card-not-present transactions for MCC codes 5967 (direct marketing), 7273 (dating services), and 7995 (betting, lottery, and casino gaming). 

Other Fiserv Changes For April 2024

Beyond the rate increases, Fiserv also notified merchants about some miscellaneous account changes. Here’s a quick summary summary of what you need to know:

Fiserv recently updated its terminal software (which they do periodically). The latest update should automatically download to device, and you can follow the prompts on the terminal to complete the software update. Just make sure you’re regularly settling batches to ensure your terminals are running on the newest software (which contains data security updates).

As of April 2024, Fiserv is no longer adding TeleCheck or TeleCheck-specific hardware to any new or existing merchant accounts or locations. Merchants who currently have a TeleCheck merchant account via Fiserv won’t have any of their existing hardware affected. 

Fiserv is also reminding merchants that disputes can be managed online through the Dispute Manager Business Track portal. The notice also contained a reminder that Mastercard is phasing out magnetic stripe cards.

Fiserv Rate Changes Effective March 2023

The following fees and changes will be assessed to Fiserv retail and wholesale clients as of March 1, 2023:

• Visa Estimated Auth Fee – 0.02%
• Visa Incremental Auth Fee – 0.02%
• Discover Program Integrity Fee – Increasing to $0.10 from $0.05
• Visa Merchant Response 21-25 – $1.75 (up from $1.35)
• Visa Merchant Response 26-30 – $2.15 (up from $1.65)
• Visa Dispute No Accept – $1.00 (up from $0.75)
• Visa Case Filing Fee – $12.50 (up from $10.00)
• Visa Manual Switch Fee – $0.15

The Visa dispute fees and manual switch fees are only applicable to domestic US regions. All other changes apply to both domestic and LAC (Latin American and Caribbean) regions.

Fiserv to Retire Payeezy Gateway

Merchants currently using Payeezy, an ecommerce payment gateway owned by FISERV, need to prepare for a transition. Here’s what you need to know about this change:

• Payeezy will be retired on August 31, 2023.
• Merchants will not be able to process any transactions using Payeezy after that date.
• July 31, 2022, is the last day to add your Payeezy account to a new location.
• After July 31, 2022, you need to use a different payment gateway for any new locations where you’ll accept card payments online.

Reach out directly to your processor if you have any questions to ensure you don’t experience any interruptions during this transition.

Fiserv Updates and Fee Increases Effective July 2022

As of 7/1/2022, FISERV merchants will be charged a 1% fee for card-not-present (CNP) transactions processed in non-US currencies. The fee will get applied to the exchange rate upon conversion for each transaction. 

The fee will be itemized separately on monthly statements, and included in daily settlement amounts. Continuing using your merchant account after June 30, 2022 constitutes as acceptance of these terms, according to the notice sent by FISERV.

Fiserv Debit Network Annual Fee Schedule 2022

In a notice to merchants, FISERV outlined the fee amounts and billing dates for Debit Network Annual Fees in 2022:

• PULSE – $16 in June for PULSE activity between March 1 and May 31
• NYCE – $16 in July for NYCE activity between April 1 and June 30
• STAR – $16 in July for STAR activity between June 1 and June 30
• CULIANCE – $16 in July for CULIANCE activity between April 1 and June 30
• ACCEL – $16 in October for ACCEL activity between July 1 and September 30

Fiserv Updates and Fee Increases Effective February 2022

As of 2/1/2022, the following changes and new monthly fees will go into effect for FISERV customers:

• AFFN Revised QSR fee for PINless POS — 1.15% + $0.02 per transaction (no cap)
• New STAR fee for debit transactions of $0.01 to support the tokenization service.
• STAR Standard — Increasing from $0.0325 to $0.10 for Purchase 

Correction/Cancellation, Purchase Return, Denied Transactions/Reversals, and Pre-authorization/Authorization transactions

• STAR Choice PIN — Increasing from $0.0325 to $0.10 for Purchase Correction/Cancellation, Purchase Return, Denied Transactions/Reversals, and Pre-authorization/Authorization transactions
• STAR PINless — Increasing from $0.0325 to $0.10 for Purchase Correction/Cancellation, Purchase Return, Denied Transactions/Reversals, and Pre-authorization/Authorization transactions
• STAR Billpay — Increasing from $0.0325 to $0.10 for Purchase Correction/Cancellation, Purchase Return, Denied Transactions/Reversals, and Pre-authorization/Authorization transactions
• STAR Ecommerce Switch — Increasing from $0.0325 to $0.10 for Purchase Correction/Cancellation, Purchase Return, Denied Transactions/Reversals, and Pre-authorization/Authorization transactions
• STAR Access Standard and STAR Access Choice Switch fees increasing from $0.0325 to $0.10 for Denied Transactions/Reversals.

Fiserv (First Data) and ISO Hidden Fees

This is the beginning of a new era to reveal how credit card processing companies are adding hidden fees, downgrading interchange rates, and implementing surcharges to charge businesses more than they should be.

It is strictly educational and comes from Merchant Cost Consulting’s auditing experiences every month of what we see happening in the credit card processing industry.

First Data Fiserv

Here we see an inactivity fee charged to a merchant for not meeting a sales amount requirement. This fee is rarely ever disclosed to merchants and is a credit card processing fee charged that acts as an annual fee. This merchant processed sales volume but was still charged this fee in addition to their already incurred annual costs.

First Data ISO Advanced Merchant Services

Here we have a $95 annual fee charged by an ISO of First Data. The annual fee is one of many annual fees we see merchants charged, however, this fee CAN be refunded in certain circumstances. Contact us to learn how. 

First Data ISO Card Connect

Here we have a $119 annual fee charged by an ISO of First Data. The annual fee is one of many annual fees we see merchants charged, however, this fee CAN be refunded in certain circumstances. Contact us to learn how. 

This is another First Data ISO Card Connect per transaction fee we see some merchants being charged. It is interesting as typically a “Qual Discount” fee is a percentage rather than a per transaction fee, however this is not the case here.

This credit card processing fee is $0.0195 per transaction, on top of the traditional per transaction fee this merchant is already being charged. If you are running 2500 transactions a month, that is an additional $50 per month right back into Card Connect’s pocket. For what reason? There isn’t one.. This is a removable fee if you know how to get it waived.

First Data ISO Leaders Merchant Services 

Leaders Merchant Services is increasing their PCI Compliance fees. If you fail to complete their PCI compliance, Leader Merchant Services is looking to charge you an additional $59.95. That is crazy! A typical cost for this should be no more than $30 but it seems Leaders is doubling it. This fee can be waived and reduced.

Leaders Merchant Services is also looking to increase merchant’s Discount Rate by 0.05%, which is $0.50 per every $100 in sales. However, do not underestimate how much this can actually cost your business.

Leaders Merchant Services is also looking to increase the following credit card processing fees:

• $39.95 Monthly Minimum – if you do not his a certain requirement in sales, you will be charged this fee.
• $0.35 Batch Fee – every time you batch your merchant terminal or virtual terminal, you will be charged $0.35. This is typically charged daily.
• $0.30 Non Qualified Rate Differential Fee
• $7.95 Regulatory Fee
• $9.99 Enhanced Security Fee
• $5.00 Online Access Fee

First Data ISO Bank of America

In the month of January, we have also seen rate increases from the gargantuan of a credit card processor, Bank of America.

In the below example, this merchant was on 0.10%, or 10 basis points as we call it in the credit card processing world. Bank of America increased their rate to 0.53%. That is substantial as its over 5x the amount they were paying.

Imagine if this happened to you? That within a blink of an eye your rates were increased by 5x? Be on the lookout for this if you are leveraging Bank of America as your merchant service provider.

About Fiserv (Formerly First Data) Merchant Services

Fiserv is one of the largest credit card processors in the world. They serve over six million merchants across the globe and have 1.4 billion accounts on file. The company processes 12,000 financial transactions every second.

Founded in 1986, the organization has made some big acquisitions over the years, including CheckFree Corporation in 2007, Open Solutions in 2013, and First Data in 2019.

First Data Global Leasing is a leading division of Fiserv that provides leased credit card processors to ISOs (independent sales organizations), merchant account providers, and payment processors so businesses can accept credit card payments with a monthly fee added for the equipment.

Final Thoughts

Credit card processing fees can be confusing and difficult to keep track of. With all the changes that occur every month, merchants find it difficult to understand what fee is real, what fee can be alleviated (like a monthly customer service fee), and what each fee even means (flat rate pricing vs. interchange plus).

It is not necessarily getting these fees reduced or waive that cause the headache, it’s keeping those fees off your account or to not appear again in the future.

Merchant Cost Consulting specializes in auditing merchant statements to find hidden fees, surcharges, and obscure fees that can be removed, alleviated, or reduced. Contact us to day for a free audit and consultation.