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The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has confirmed that surcharges on debit and credit card payments across EFTPOS, Mastercard and Visa will be banned from 1 October 2026.

The decision follows the RBA's review of merchant card payment costs and surcharging, which found that surcharges are no longer achieving their original purpose of encouraging consumers to choose lower-cost payment methods. Many consumers now find surcharges difficult to avoid, and businesses and customers alike often find the rules complex and confusing.

Key outcomes of the review include:

• The removal of all debit and credit card surcharges from 1 October 2026
• Lower interchange fee caps for debit and consumer credit card payments, helping reduce payment costs for businesses, particularly small businesses
• Greater transparency, with EFTPOS, Mastercard, Visa and large payment providers required to publish fee information and provide more standardised merchant statements

What does this mean for your business?

Now is the time to:

• Review your merchant service fees
• Speak with your payment provider about negotiating better rates
• Update pricing strategies and POS systems
• Factor the changes into your future cashflow planning

While the end of surcharging may simplify pricing and reduce compliance requirements, businesses should start preparing early to ensure a smooth transition before October 2026.

If you'd like help understanding how these changes may affect your business, our specialist team is here to help.

Recently, a Western Australian man has been sentenced in the Perth Magistrates Court after pleading guilty to two offences under the Bankruptcy Act. 

In April 2026, a sentence of 3 months' imprisonment for each offence was issued, to be served concurrently.

His conduct involved: 

• failing to disclose an inheritance to his registered trustees and;
• dealing with the funds by transferring the funds to another bank account after the filing of his bankruptcy petition.

Magistrate Urquhart released Mr Machin on a $1,000 Recognizance Release Order with a condition that he be of good behaviour for 12 months.

Hidden inheritance 

Mr Machin became bankrupt in April 2021 by way of a Debtor's Petition, and registered trustees were appointed to administer his bankrupt estate.

On 30 December 2021 - approximately 6 months into his bankruptcy - a Grant of Probate was issued naming Mr Machin as both executor and beneficiary of a will. He was entitled to receive $124,780, but failed to disclose receipt of this property to his trustee.

In January 2022, Mr Machin transferred this inheritance into a bank account held in the name of a family member, for which he was a co-signatory. 

Between 1 February 2022 and 27 April 2022, Mr Machin transferred a total of $84,700 from that account into other bank accounts.

The court heard a significant amount of time had passed between Mr Machin receiving and dealing with the funds and notifying the registered trustee, the amount of money involved in the offending was substantial, and Mr Machin's self-reported motivation for offending was to repay 'loan sharks'.

Inspector-General in Bankruptcy and Australian Financial Security Chief Executive, Tim Beresford, said: 

'This sentence acts as both a specific and general deterrence to calculated conduct that undermines confidence in Australia's personal insolvency system. AFSA continues to prioritise harms-based enforcement where deliberate misuse of the system is evident.'

This matter was prosecuted by the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Cth) (CDPP) following an investigation and referral by the Australian Financial Security Authority.

Source: https://www.afsa.gov.au/news/wa-man-sentenced-after-afsa-finds-hidden-assets-bankruptcy 

Australian Financial Security Authority (AFSA)  AFSA’s latest provisional statistics show  

an increase in personal insolvencies during December 2025.

A total of 1,063 new personal insolvencies was recorded in December 2025, rising from 992 in November 2025 and rising from 828 in December 2024.

Of the new personal insolvencies:

• 651 were bankruptcies
• 386 were debt agreements
• 24 were personal insolvency agreements
• 2 were insolvent deceased estates.

AFSA also recorded 11 new temporary debt protections during the month. Temporary debt protections give individuals 21 days of relief from unsecured creditor enforcement, allowing time to seek advice or consider insolvency options.

Where industry information was available, the top 3 most common employment industries of an individual entering personal insolvency were:

• Construction
• Health care and social assistance
• Other services.

In December, 344 individuals entering personal insolvency were also involved in a business including sole traders, partners, or company directors. This is an increase from 298 in November 2025.
You can read their full report here 

With effect from the beginning of February 2026, ASIC removed ALL directors’ residential addresses from company searches obtained via its website.  

The change applies to both current and historical extracts.

ASIC has advised that the change is in response to concerns regarding a director’s privacy and safety.

Note:

• The change currently applies to ASIC website searches only
• Information accessed via credit reporting agencies is unchanged at this time

Various agencies have expressed surprise at the sudden  change, which was made without consultation or a transitional period.  

If  this impacts your industry, please raise your concerns with your professional  body including ASIC, AICM, ARITA, AIIP.