At a glance
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Also called | Tap, tap to pay, tap and go |
| French term | Paiement sans contact |
| Where it sits in the payment flow | At the terminal, when the customer presents the card or phone |
| Who controls it | The card network and the card issuer set the rules and limits |
| Does it cost the merchant | Yes, at your normal card rate for the card used |
How it works
FCAC, the federal consumer agency, says you usually do not need a PIN for a contactless payment, and that you are asked for one if you tap above the contactless card payment limit. It also says a PIN is required once you pass your total contactless spending limit. Those limits come from the issuer and the network, not from the merchant.
- The customer holds a card, a phone or a watch near the reader on your terminal.
- The terminal reads the payment details and sends the sale for approval.
- The issuer approves or declines, and the terminal shows the result. For a larger sale it may ask for a PIN.
- The sale settles to your account as with any other card sale.
A Canadian example
A bakery in Montréal takes $10,000 in one month, all tapped on small-business Mastercard cards. Mastercard Canada's published table lists the Contactless, Small Business rate for a Core card at 0.70%. That is $70 in interchange, before network fees and your processor's markup. This is an example only, not a quote. Premium cards and larger businesses pay more, and your own rate depends on your contract.
What is different in Canada and Québec
- Little differs between Québec and the rest of Canada. Tap works the same coast to coast, and the card rules are national.
- Interac Debit works by tap as well. Interac says its interchange is currently set at zero, and you pay your processor a fee set in your contract. That fee is charged per sale, so it is worth finding on your statement.
- The Code of Conduct says that when debit and credit cards sit on the same device or wallet, they must be clearly separate. The customer must be able to choose which card is used for contactless payments.
- Visa's small-merchant threshold rises from $300,000 to $750,000 in annual Visa sales on 24 October 2026. The Classic small-merchant card-present rate falls from 0.77% to 0.70%.
- Clover devices in Canada cannot take card payments offline, so a tap needs a connection.
What it costs and where it shows on your statement
A tap is priced as a card-present sale. In Mastercard's table, Contactless and Card Present EMV (chip) show the same small-business rate of 0.70%. Visa's current rate for a basic card is in our interchange guide. On your statement, taps may be grouped by card type or folded into a blended rate. Interac taps show as debit, with a per-sale fee.
Where CleverPays fits in this step
The card network and the issuer own the tap. The network sets the rules, the issuer sets your customer's limit and approves the sale, and your processor settles it. CleverPays does not set interchange or network fees, does not approve or decline cards and does not set Visa, Mastercard or Interac rules. Clover is Fiserv's platform, and Clover devices in Canada work only with Fiserv processing. CleverPays is operated by Groupe Heo Inc., an Agent of Fiserv Canada Ltd.
We can recommend and set up Clover and other terminals that accept taps. We can read a recent statement with you and show the effective rate and each fee line, including your debit fee. We will walk you through how a tap is priced and answer your questions in English and French.
Common mistakes
- Assuming a tap is cheaper or dearer than a chip sale. On the published tables above they can be priced the same, so check your own statement.
- Not knowing your Interac fee. It is per sale, and a $4 tap and a $400 tap can cost the same.
- Buying a terminal without a tap reader or a wallet-ready one. Ask for a terminal that takes taps from cards and phones.
Related terms
- Digital wallet: an app, like Apple Pay or Google Pay, that stores a card for tapping.
- Interac Debit: the Canadian debit network, which also works by tap.
- Payment terminal: the device the customer taps.
- Interchange fee: the fee that goes to the card issuer on each sale.
- NFC: the short-range wireless link that carries the tap.
- EMV: the chip standard that tap payments build on.
Common questions
What is the contactless limit in Canada?
It is set by the card network and your customer's issuer, so it varies by card. FCAC says the terminal asks for a PIN when a tap goes above the contactless card payment limit. We have not quoted a dollar figure because we did not find one on a primary source we read.
Are contactless payments safe?
FCAC says mobile wallets may store payment details in the cloud, on a chip in the phone or on the SIM card. It also says most financial institutions offer a security guarantee, so you may not have to pay for unauthorized transactions. If a phone is lost or stolen, FCAC advises contacting the wallet provider.
Does tap cost more than chip and PIN?
For Mastercard's small-business credit rates, no. Both show 0.70%. Your own cost depends on your contract and your card mix.
Sources
- FCAC, Using debit cards, read 6 October 2026.
- FCAC, Mobile wallets, read 6 October 2026.
- FCAC, Code of Conduct for the Payment Card Industry in Canada, read 6 October 2026.
- Mastercard Canada, Merchant interchange rates, effective 1 August 2026, checked 24 September 2026.
- Visa Canada, Upcoming changes to interchange rates, checked 24 September 2026.
- Interac, Understanding fees, read 6 October 2026.
- Clover Canada, Pricing FAQ, checked 24 September 2026.
