Standard Rates for Credit Card Interchange Fees Disclosed

1. The Japan Fair Trade Commission (JFTC) released a report on a survey of credit card transactions on April 8, 2022. Furthermore, in FY2020 and FY2021, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) held meetings of the study group on developing the digital environment with a view toward furthering the spread of cashless payments among small and medium-sized stores, and published a report on the findings on March 22, 2022.

A notable conclusion drawn in these two reports is as follows:
In the market for managing merchants participating in credit card and other payment methods, an adequate measure should be taken to promote merchant fee negotiations between merchants and acquirers as well as competition among the latter. To this end, it will be appropriate for international brands that do not issue cards or manage merchants to disclose their standard rates for interchange fees in Japan.

2. In light of the above, JFTC and METI have been progressively working toward the disclosure of standard rates for interchange fees by international brands. As a result, Mastercard, UnionPay, and Visa have now released their standard rates.

• Mastercard
• Union Pay
• Visa

3. The JFTC and METI will continue to work on developing a competitive environment in relation to credit cards.

Related link

• Standard Rates for Credit Card Interchange Fees Will Be Disclosed (September 14, 2022)
• Reference : About Interchange Fees(PDF:392KB)

Division in Charge

Cashless Payment Promotion Office, Commerce and Service Industry Policy Group