Switching Payment Processors in Canada: Your Rights Under the Code

The Code of Conduct for the Payment Card Industry in Canada is overseen by the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC). All payment card networks operating in Canada have adopted it. It applies to the networks, to acquirers (the banks and companies that let you accept cards) and to the companies that work under them, which the Code calls downstream participants. Its examples include payment processors, payment facilitators and aggregators.

The Code was revised in 2024. Most changes took effect October 30, 2024 and the rest on April 30, 2025. Here are the rights that matter when you want to switch, as of September 27, 2026:

One important exception. The notice and 70-day rights don't apply to fee increases made under a pre-set schedule that's written into your agreement. If your contract says a fee rises on a set date, that increase doesn't open the 70-day window.

"90 days' notice" is out of date. You'll still see it online. The current Code requires 30 to 60 calendar days. FCAC's plain-language summary is on its merchant rights page.

The 70-day right covers your agreements for card processing. A terminal lease is often a separate contract, sometimes with a separate leasing company. The Code requires your information summary box to say whether your terminal is rented, leased or bought, name the leasing company and list its fees. It doesn't clearly say a separate lease ends when your processing agreement does.

Some processors' guides say leases often fall outside the Code. So before you give notice:

• Find out who owns the terminal. Rented, leased or owned? The summary box should tell you.
• Read the lease on its own. Check the term, the buyout amount and what happens if you stop processing.
• Plan the return. Rented equipment usually has to go back in good condition, and returning it can be a condition of your cancellation.
• Check gateway and software contracts. A gateway, point-of-sale system or app billed by a third party may have its own terms.

Outside the 70-day window, your agreement decides what leaving costs. Start with the information summary box, then find these clauses:

If an exit fee is large and your renewal date is close, it can cost less to give non-renewal notice and wait. If you've had a fee increase in the last 70 days, check whether you can leave now without penalty.

Don't switch for a headline rate. Compare what you'd actually pay. The Code requires your monthly statement to show your effective rate, so you already have the number to beat:

Total fees ÷ total card sales = effective rate

Say you took $40,000 (CAD) in card sales last month and paid $1,080 (CAD) in fees. Your effective rate is 2.7%. Ask each new provider to estimate its effective rate on the same sales mix: card-present or online, card types, average sale, and any cards from outside Canada.

• Ask how pricing is built. With interchange-plus pricing, you pay interchange (the fee that goes to the bank that issued your customer's card) and network fees at cost, plus a markup you can see. A flat rate bundles them together.
• Check the small-business rates. Visa and Mastercard have lower credit card interchange for smaller Canadian merchants, and Visa's program changes on October 24, 2026. See credit card processing fees in Canada for the rates and who qualifies.
• Count every monthly fee. Gateway, PCI, statement and minimum fees add up.

If you sell to U.S. customers too, read cross-border payments between the U.S. and Canada before you compare. Cards from the other country cost more, and the right setup can change which offer is cheaper.

The safe order is simple: new account working first, old account closed last.

1. Get your new account approved. Don't give notice until it is. If you sell in both countries, decide first whether you need a Canadian merchant account, a U.S. account or both. When START sets up both, that's two merchant accounts, one in CAD and one in USD, each with its own Authorize.Net gateway, managed together. (See Canadian merchant account requirements.)
2. Set up your gateway and checkout. Connect your website, cart or invoicing to the new gateway and run test sales. If you're moving to Authorize.Net, see Authorize.Net in Canada.
3. Set up terminals. Get new or reprogrammed terminals running and tested before the old ones go back.
4. Plan for recurring customers. Saved cards and subscriptions are the hardest part. Card data is usually stored as tokens at your old provider, and they don't always move. Ask your new provider whether saved cards can be moved, and ask your old provider whether it will export them. If they can't be moved, plan how you'll ask customers to re-enter their cards before the old account closes.
5. Run both accounts for a short overlap. Move sales to the new account and watch the first deposits arrive.
6. Give notice in writing. Follow the notice clause in your agreement, keep a copy, and note the date. If you're using the 70-day right, say so.
7. Return equipment and check your last statements. Keep proof of return. Watch for holdbacks and final fees, and make sure refunds and chargebacks on old sales are handled.

Sometimes the switch isn't your choice. Payment apps such as Stripe, Square and PayPal can close or freeze an account, often after a review of what you sell or a rise in disputes. Merchant agreements commonly let the provider end the agreement too, not only app terms, and many let it hold funds for a period after closing.

The Code gives you rights on fees, notice and cancellation. It doesn't stop a provider from closing your account. If it happens:

• Get the reason and the hold terms in writing. Ask how much is held, for how long and why.
• Download your records now. Sales history, customer data you're allowed to keep, and dispute records help the next application.
• Apply for a merchant account that knows your business. Tell the new provider what happened. A clear account of the closure is better than one they find later.

For the first 48 hours, frozen funds and the MATCH list, see what to do when Stripe or Square shuts down your account. It's written for U.S. merchants, but most of the steps apply in Canada too.

If you think your processor broke the Code, for example by raising a fee without proper notice or refusing a 70-day cancellation, FCAC's merchant complaint process works in this order:

1. Your processor first. It must acknowledge your complaint within 5 business days and deal with it within 20 business days.
2. Then the card network. If you're not satisfied, take it to the network (Visa, Mastercard, Interac and so on). Networks have 30 business days.
3. FCAC at any stage. You can contact FCAC at any point. FCAC doesn't resolve individual complaints or award compensation. It may investigate whether a network is failing to follow the Code.

Put your complaint in writing and attach the fee notice, your statements and your agreement's summary box.