Mastercard NABU Fee in Canada: October 19, 2026

What changes on October 19

According to PayFacto's card brand network fee updates for Canada, effective October 19, 2026 Mastercard introduces the NABU fee and stops charging its Acquirer Clearing Fee. Fiserv's Canadian pass-through fee page says the same: the Acquirer Clearing Fee is no longer applicable from October 19, 2026, and NABU starts that day. Mastercard sets these fees in US dollars; Fiserv says they are billed in the Canadian dollar equivalent. The table shows the amounts PayFacto published.

Why the amounts differ between processors

Not every notice shows the same figures. Fiserv's Canadian page lists NABU at USD 0.0220 per domestic authorization and USD 0.0333 per cross-border authorization, higher than the amounts PayFacto lists. Processors can present network fees differently, for example with or without taxes or other adjustments included. Do not assume the figure in one processor's notice is the figure on your statement. Ask your own processor which amount it charges you, per authorization, in Canadian dollars.

What it means for different businesses

The retired clearing fee was charged per cleared transaction at two levels. Fiserv describes the small ticket fee as applying to transactions of USD 25.00 or less and the large ticket fee to USD 25.01 or more. NABU is charged per authorization instead. Using PayFacto's amounts, a domestic Mastercard sale under USD 25 that used to carry a USD 0.005 clearing fee now carries a USD 0.0195 NABU fee. Businesses with many small Mastercard sales, such as cafes, quick-service restaurants, convenience stores and parking, are the ones to watch. NABU also applies to authorization reversals, so businesses that authorize and then cancel or release holds, such as hotels, fuel and rentals, should check that line too. Businesses that take many foreign cards, such as tourism and online sellers, pay the higher foreign amount.

How you will see it depends on your pricing

On interchange-plus pricing, network fees are passed through, so NABU may appear as its own line or inside a grouped Mastercard network fees line, and the clearing fee line should disappear. On a flat rate or tiered pricing, network fees are blended into your rate. The change may be absorbed, or your processor may use it as a reason to adjust your rate. Neither will be obvious unless you ask. Remember that a new line called NABU is not your processor's markup; it is a network fee. A markup change is a separate question.

Three questions for your processor

1. Will NABU show as its own line on my statement, or be folded into another fee? 2. Is the Acquirer Clearing Fee removed from my statement at the same time? 3. If I am on a flat rate, does my rate change at all because of this? Ask in writing and keep the replies. If you get a vague answer, compare your October statement, sent in early November, with September, line by line.

Other October changes on the same statement

NABU is not the only network change this month. Visa Canada lowers its small merchant interchange rates and widens that program on October 24, 2026, which we cover in Visa Canada Small Merchant Rates: October 2026 Change. US processors are also implementing fall network changes from October 24, covered in Card Network Changes: Check Your November Statement. Your October statement can show a lower Visa line and a new Mastercard line side by side. Check each one rather than only the total.

What changes for multi-location and enterprise merchants

At high volume, a fraction of a cent per authorization becomes a real number. Count your monthly Mastercard authorizations, including reversals, by location and channel, then multiply by the NABU amount your processor confirms. Check whether your systems create extra authorizations or reversals, for example repeated pre-authorizations, split tenders or retries, since each can now carry a fee. Make sure your contract says network fees are passed through at cost and how changes are notified. Groups with separate merchant accounts per location should confirm the change is applied the same way on every account.