The Visa small-merchant rate in 2026

What changed

On October 24, 2026, Visa lowers some interchange rates for small merchants and raises the yearly Visa credit volume limit for its small-merchant program from CA$300,000 to CA$750,000, according to CFIB.

Based on a processor's published sheet, the in-person rate for basic Visa credit cards in the small-merchant program falls from 0.77% to 0.70%. Visa had not yet posted the new table on visa.ca when we checked, so FeeHound labels these new rates as estimates until it does.

Who may qualify

Eligibility is decided by your acquirer (the company that signed you up for card payments), based on your yearly Visa credit volume. Your acquirer may take time to apply the new limit.

FeeHound estimates your yearly Visa credit volume from your statement. If you are close to the limit, we show both outcomes in the fair range.

Does the cut reach you?

On interchange-plus plans, network rate cuts pass through to you automatically.

On flat or tiered plans, the Code of Conduct says that when a card network lowers a fee that applies to your transactions and your processor does not pass the full reduction on, it must tell you 30 to 60 days ahead, and you can give notice to cancel without penalty within 70 days after the reduction took effect. For the October 24, 2026 change, that day is January 2, 2027.

One statement cannot show whether a flat-rate plan passed the cut on, because the Code measures it across the processor's group of similar merchants. The right step is to ask your processor to confirm in writing. FeeHound can write that letter for you.