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You might have heard that the Australian Government is preparing to ban debit card surcharges – those pesky percentages added to seemingly every electronic transaction.

Don’t get too excited. While the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) is reviewing card surcharges – which cost Australians anywhere between $1 billion and $4 billion a year – any change would not come into effect until 2026.

The emails are lobbing into your inbox with increasing regularity. You may even be getting alerts on your phone. The flashing ads are all over websites. All of them promise you amazing deals and unprecedented discounts.

There is no escaping the fact we’re hurtling toward Black Friday. And peak spending season. This mad day of discounts traditionally marks the start of Christmas shopping in the United States, falling just after Thanksgiving.

Ever wondered why your cup of coffee costs an extra 15 cents at one café and not another? Or when you go to pay for petrol with Visa or Mastercard, you're told it will cost another 1.5 percent? These added costs are known as card surcharges and while they might not account for much in one or two transactions, they certainly add up.

The Albanese Government is preparing to ban debit card surcharges - the amount a business charges to cover the cost of an electronic transaction – from 1 January 2026, pending a review by the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA). Treasurer Jim Chalmers said consumers should not be punished for using cards or digital payments.