Scheme fees are charges set by card networks, such as Visa, Mastercard, and others, for using their payment infrastructure to process card transactions. They are part of the total cost of accepting card payments. Scheme fees are usually charged to acquirers or payment processors, then passed on to merchants directly or included in broader payment pricing.
In simple terms, scheme fees are the card network's charges for enabling card payment processing.
When a customer pays by card, the transaction passes through several parties, including the merchant, acquirer, issuer, processor, and card network. The card network provides the rules, messaging infrastructure, authorization rails, clearing processes, settlement framework, and security standards that make the card transaction possible. Scheme fees are charged for access to and use of this network.
For merchants, scheme fees may appear as a separate line item in provider statements or be included in a blended merchant service charge, depending on the pricing model.
Scheme fees can vary depending on the card network, region, transaction type, and provider setup. Common factors include:
Because card schemes may apply multiple fee categories, scheme fees can be harder to understand than a single flat transaction charge.
Scheme fees and interchange fees are different parts of card payment cost. Interchange fees are paid to the cardholder's issuing bank. They compensate the issuer for its role in the transaction, including authorization, funding, and cardholder risk.
Scheme fees are paid to the card network and cover access to it, transaction messaging, clearing, settlement support, scheme rules, and related services.
Scheme fees are one component of the broader cost a merchant pays to accept card payments. Merchant discount rate, or MDR, is the merchant-facing payment acceptance cost. It may include interchange fees, scheme fees, acquiring fees, processor fees, gateway fees, and provider margin.
Scheme fees are therefore one part of the total payment cost that can be included in MDR or shown separately, depending on the provider's pricing model.
Scheme fees are usually reviewed together with interchange fees, acquiring costs, processor fees, settlement reports, refunds, chargebacks, and transaction volumes. For businesses using several PSPs, acquirers, currencies, and markets, payment costs can vary across providers and routes. Clear reporting helps payment teams understand how different fee components affect margins and where cost differences come from.
Corefy can support this visibility by centralizing payment data across providers, routes, methods, and currencies in the convenient payment dashboard. This helps teams analyze payment performance and cost signals in one place, while the exact scheme fee calculation still depends on card network rules, provider pricing, and acquiring setup.
