Florida credit card surcharges: the statute, the 2015 ruling and today

Florida's statute, section 501.0117, still reads as a ban: a seller who accepts credit cards may not add a surcharge for paying by card. But in November 2015 the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals, in Dana's Railroad Supply v. Attorney General, struck the statute down as an unconstitutional limit on free speech. Today a surcharge is generally treated as allowed in Florida if it is clearly disclosed and stays within the card networks' rules and their cap of 3 percent. Confirm the current position with your processor and current state guidance before you add one.

What does the Florida statute say?

Section 501.0117 of the Florida Statutes, in its 2026 text, says a seller or lessor who accepts credit cards may not impose a surcharge on a buyer who pays by credit card instead of cash, a check or a similar means. It defines a surcharge as any additional amount imposed at the time of a sale that increases the price a buyer pays for using a credit card, and it makes a violation a misdemeanor of the second degree. It does not apply to a discount offered to all prospective customers for paying by cash, check or another non-card means. The words are still in the statute book.

What did the court decide?

In Dana's Railroad Supply v. Attorney General, State of Florida, decided on November 4, 2015, four small businesses that had received cease-and-desist letters from the Attorney General challenged the law. The Eleventh Circuit, whose rulings bind federal courts in Florida, held that the law targets speech and not just conduct, because it let merchants offer a cash discount but not describe the same price difference as a card surcharge. The court wrote that it must strike down section 501.0117 as an unconstitutional abridgment of free speech, and it reversed and sent the case back to the lower court. The text of the opinion is public on the court's website.

What does that mean today?

The statute was not repealed, and a ruling about speech does not make every card surcharge free of rules. The way owners and guides read the position is that Florida's ban cannot be enforced as written against a merchant who clearly tells customers about the surcharge, and that surcharges are generally treated as allowed with clear disclosure. The ruling does not say what disclosure is enough, and it does not change the card networks' rules. Ask your processor for its current rules and ask an attorney whether anything has changed since the ruling.

What do the card networks require?

The networks that carry credit cards set their own conditions for a merchant that surcharges. The usual points are a cap on the percentage, commonly 3 percent, notice to the network and to your processor before you start, signs at the entrance and the register, a separate line on the receipt and no surcharge on debit or prepaid cards. These conditions sit in your merchant agreement and can change, so ask your processor for the current terms and do not rely on a number you read online.

How does the operations charge law apply?

Section 509.214 treats a credit card surcharge as an operations charge. If you add one, you must show its amount or percentage and its purpose on the menu, in any written contract and on any website or app where orders are placed, in type at least as large as the item descriptions, and put it in a notice on the bill. The receipt must show it on a line separate from gratuity and sales tax. The next guide in this set on the operations charge law gives the steps. This is the clearest Florida disclosure rule, so follow it if you surcharge.

A worked example of the cost

A restaurant takes $50,000 a month by credit card at an effective cost of 2.8 percent, which is $1,400. A disclosed surcharge of 2.5 percent on credit card sales would bring in about $1,250 and recover most of the cost, and it stays under the 3 percent network cap. A debit card sale carries no surcharge. The same restaurant could instead offer a 2.5 percent cash discount, a route the statute itself leaves open, or raise menu prices by a small amount. Compare the three on your own statement.

What are the alternatives?

• A cash discount offered to every customer, which the statute has always allowed.
• A small menu price rise on the items card guests order most.
• A review of your processing rates, using interchange-plus pricing as a comparison.
• A higher average check through a set menu or a pairing.

What should you do before you start?

1. Read section 501.0117 and the Dana's Railroad Supply opinion, or ask an attorney to.
2. Ask your processor for its current surcharge rules and notice steps.
3. Follow section 509.214 on the menu, website, bill and receipt.
4. Apply any surcharge to credit cards only, never debit or prepaid cards.
5. Train staff to explain it in a sentence, and review it every year.

More guides for your business:

• Florida operations charge disclosure law for restaurants
• Florida restaurant gift card law
• Florida automatic renewal law for dining clubs and memberships

More in the US guides for food businesses.