Document ID: chunk:federal_register_of_legislation:F2016C00855:body:0:p1
Version: federal_register_of_legislation:F2016C00855
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The Setting of Interchange Fees in the Visa Debit Payment System
as amended
made under section 18 of the
Payment Systems (Regulation) Act 1998
Compilation Date:   1 September 2016
Compilation Number:   3
This compilation was prepared on 1 September 2016
taking into account amendments up to Revocation of the Standard the 'Honour All Cards' Rule in the Visa Debit and Visa Credit Card Systems and the 'No Surcharge' Rule in the Visa Debit System registered on 1 September 2016.
Prepared by the Reserve Bank of Australia

Standard

The Setting of Interchange Fees in the Visa Debit Payment System

Objective

The objective of this Standard is to ensure that the setting of interchange fees in the designated Visa Debit payment system promotes:

(i) efficiency; and

(ii) competition

in the Australian payments system.

Application

          1. This Standard is determined under Section 18 of the Payment Systems (Regulation) Act 1998.

          2. This Standard applies to the payment system operated within Australia known as Visa Debit, which was designated as a payment system on 23 February 2004.

          3. In this Standard:

         an 'acquirer' is a participant in the Visa Debit system in Australia that provides services to a merchant to allow that merchant to accept a Visa Debit card;

         'credit card transaction' has the same meaning as in the Standard The Setting of Wholesale ('Interchange') Fees in the Designated Credit Card Schemes;

         'financial year' is the 12-month period ending 30 June;

         an 'issuer' is a participant in the Visa Debit system in Australia that issues Visa Debit cards to its customers;

         'merchant' means a merchant in Australia that accepts a Visa Debit card for payment for goods or services;

         'reference year' is the financial year prior to the relevant year;

         'relevant year' is the financial year in which the benchmark must be calculated;

         'Visa Debit card' means a card issued by a participant in the Visa Debit payment system, under the rules of the Scheme, that allows the cardholder to make payments to merchants for goods or services by accessing a deposit account held at an authorised deposit-taking institution;

         'Visa Debit card transaction' means a transaction in Australia between a Visa Debit cardholder and a merchant involving the purchase of goods or services using a Visa Debit card (net of credits, reversals and chargebacks);

         terms defined in the Payment Systems (Regulation) Act 1998 have the same meaning in this Standard.

         4.                                          This Standard refers to wholesale fees, known as 'interchange' fees, which are payable between an issuer and an acquirer, directly or indirectly, in relation to a Visa Debit card transaction.

         5.                                          Each participant in the Visa Debit system must do all things necessary on its part to ensure compliance with this Standard.

         6.