Can a daycare in Canada charge a fee for card payments?

Visa allows a service fee in Canada for child care services, merchant category code 8351. The cap is 1.5% on Visa Debit and 2.5% on credit and prepaid cards. But childcare fees are now set by provinces under the Canada-wide $10-a-day system. Ontario counts every mandatory fee toward its $22 a day cap. Québec limits extra fees for subsidized spaces and bars card fees on consumers. Check those rules before the card rules.

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Reviewed by the CleverPays payments team · Last reviewed

The short answer

  • Visa lists child care services (MCC 8351) as a service fee category in Canada. Your acquirer assigns the MCC. You cannot pick it.
  • The cap is 1.5% on Visa Debit and 2.5% on credit and prepaid. The fee must reflect your real cost, so it may need to be lower.
  • You must accept Visa in every card-not-present channel you use. That includes your parent portal and phone payments.
  • Ontario counts all mandatory fees toward the $22 a day cap. Ask your service system manager how a card fee would be treated.
  • Québec parents are consumers. The consumer protection office says merchants may not charge them a card fee.

The card rules in brief

Child care services is one of eight Visa service fee categories in Canada. The fee must be called a service fee and shown before payment, with a way to cancel at no cost. It cannot be combined with a surcharge. Mastercard has no Canadian service fee program like Visa's, and merchants cannot add a fee to Interac debit. The full rules:

For credit card surcharges, see our surcharging guide.

Which childcare businesses MCC 8351 can cover

Visa's rules say your acquirer must assign the MCC that most accurately describes your business. Only the acquirer decides.

BusinessIs MCC 8351 likely?
Licensed daycare or childcare centreYour acquirer decides. Child care services is the closest category.
Home childcare agencyYour acquirer decides.
Before- and after-school programYour acquirer decides. Programs run by a school may carry a school MCC.
Day camp run as childcareYour acquirer decides. A camp may be classed elsewhere.
Tutoring, enrichment or sports classesUsually not childcare. Other MCCs are not on Visa's Canadian list.

If your MCC is not one of the eight, Visa's service fee rules do not apply. Neither do Visa's US categories.

How daycares get paid, and where Visa's channel rule bites

Most centres bill monthly or every two weeks. Parents pay by pre-authorized debit, Interac e-Transfer, cheque, card on file, a parent portal, by phone or at the front desk.

Visa's Canadian rule says a merchant charging a service fee must accept Visa in every card-not-present setting where it takes payments. Card-not-present means the card is not in front of you.

ChannelCard present?What it means for a Visa service fee
Online parent portal or payment linkNoVisa must be accepted here
Card on file for monthly feesNoVisa must be accepted here
Phone, keyed into a virtual terminalNoVisa must be accepted here
Front desk terminalYesVisa's channel rule is about card-not-present payments
Pre-authorized debit, e-Transfer, chequeNot card paymentsNo card fee applies

The $10-a-day system and provincial fee rules

The federal government says the Canada-wide system aims for an average of $10 a day for regulated child care spaces by 2025 to 2026. Each province runs its own rules and funding. Those rules can limit what a centre charges parents. This page covers Ontario and Québec. In other provinces, check your funding agreement and ask your ministry.

Ontario: CWELCC

Ontario's licensing manual sets the base fee for eligible children in programs enrolled in the Canada-Wide Early Learning and Child Care (CWELCC) system at $22 a day or less. The base fee includes any mandatory parent fee. The manual says this applies even if a third party, such as a billing company, collects it. A one-time fee is spread over the year and counts toward the $22.

Non-base fees sit outside the cap. These are fees for optional items or services, or fees when a parent breaks the agreement. The manual's examples include late pick-up fees and bank fees for non-sufficient funds. Any non-base fee must be listed in the parent handbook.

The manual does not say how a card service fee is treated. Before charging one to CWELCC families, ask your service system manager and your lawyer. Charging above the cap can lead to an administrative penalty.

Québec: reduced-contribution spaces and consumer law

The reduced contribution for a subsidized space is $9.65 a day in 2026. Section 10 of the Reduced Contribution Regulation says a provider may not "require or receive costs or a contribution from a parent in addition to" those the regulation sets, for anything provided during childcare hours. The listed exceptions are outings, hygiene items and extra meals.

Québec's fee page lists the extra fees a subsidized service may charge. They are outings, hygiene items, extra meals, care beyond 10 hours and late pick-up. Each needs the parent's written consent. A card fee is not on the list.

Separately, the OPC says merchants may not charge consumers a fee for paying by card. A sign does not change that. See Québec on our pillar page. Whether the Consumer Protection Act covers a particular CPE or non-profit daycare is a legal question. Check with your lawyer.

Ways to cover card costs without a fee

Pre-authorized debit

Parents sign once and fees come out on a set date.

Interac e-Transfer

You match each transfer to an invoice yourself.

A discount for other payment methods

The Code of Conduct lets merchants offer discounts for different payment methods. In Ontario and Québec, check the provincial fee rules above first.

Lower what cards cost you

Absorb the cost and review your statement. We cannot promise savings, but we can show you what you pay now.

Where CleverPays fits

Visa writes the service fee rules. Your acquirer assigns your MCC and tells you whether you are eligible. Your province sets childcare fee rules, and Québec law protects consumers. You decide whether to charge a fee. CleverPays does not set network rules or give legal advice.

We can check with you whether your account supports a service fee. We can set up the fee display at checkout, where the product supports it, and test a payment, a refund and the receipt with you. We can review your statement so any fee matches your real cost. We answer in English and French.

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Sources

Product and company names on this page are trademarks of their respective owners. CleverPays is not affiliated with or endorsed by them.

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Common questions

Visa permits a service fee under MCC 8351, within the caps. For CWELCC families, all mandatory fees count toward the $22 a day cap. Ask your service system manager how a card fee is treated.

Know your cost before you add a fee

A service fee has to reflect what card payments really cost your centre. Send us a recent statement and we will show you that number.

This guide is general information, not legal or financial advice.

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