Credit card processing in Illinois

What is different about taking cards in Illinois

All-in pricing starts January 1, 2027

Illinois' Junk Fee Ban Act (Public Act 104-0472, 815 ILCS 505/2MMMM) makes it unlawful to advertise, display or offer a price that leaves out a mandatory fee or surcharge, other than taxes and government fees, starting January 1, 2027. Restaurants and hotels may instead disclose the percentage of an automatic gratuity, but must build every other mandatory fee into the price.

Whether a card surcharge counts is not settled

The law treats a fee as mandatory if it must be paid, is not reasonably avoidable, or a customer would reasonably expect to pay it. A card surcharge the customer can avoid by paying cash or debit may fall outside that, but there is no official guidance yet. We plan for the conservative reading.

Surcharging today, and tips

Until then, Illinois has no surcharge law of its own, so the card-brand rules apply. Illinois law (820 ILCS 115/4.1) lets an employer deduct only the proportional card fee on the tip portion, in line with federal law. A bill to allow surcharges only where a surcharge-free way to pay exists (SB 1931) has been proposed but is not law.

How we set it up in Illinois

Dual Pricing shows the card price and the cash price up front, which fits the card-brand rules today and the conservative reading of the 2027 law. If you surcharge now, we will help you move before January 1, 2027. Or compare against transparent pricing on your own statement.

Check any state in our surcharge checker. Rules change, so we confirm the current position before configuring anything. This is general information, not legal advice.

See what you pay

Send one recent statement for a free statement review. We find your true effective rate, name every fee, and show where it can come down. Savings are estimates based on your own statement.