Canada Code of Conduct Requirements

This article offers further details regarding the thirteen Element Codes presented in the Code of Conduct for the Credit and Debit Card Industry in Canada. Although Partners will only be required to work with Payrix to resolve Element Codes 1, 2, and 13, we have detailed the other Element Codes for a better understanding of Payrix and each Partner’s shared responsibility to follow the Code requirements.

The purpose of the Code of Conduct for the Payment Card Industry in Canada (the “Code”) is to demonstrate the Payment Card industry’s commitment to:

1. Ensuring that merchants are fully aware of the costs associated with accepting Payment Cards, thereby allowing merchants to reasonably forecast their monthly costs related to accepting such payments;

2. Providing merchants with increased pricing flexibility to encourage consumers to choose the lowest-cost payment option while ensuring merchants receive clear information about their contractual terms, including changes to fees or rates, to facilitate informed decision-making and maintain transparency.

For more information, see the Payrix Canada Sub-Merchant Agreement.

Element 1: Transparency and Disclosure Element

All disclosures, notices, and communications required under the Code, whether provided in writing or digitally, must be presented in a clear, simple, and non-misleading manner.

To increase merchant understanding of payment processing, Acquirers and Downstream Participants should make information easily available for merchants on their websites (e.g., glossaries and descriptions of products, services, and dispute resolution processes), like this external facing content.

1. Payrix will ensure all disclosures to sub-merchants provided under the Code are presented in a clear, simple, and non-misleading manner.

2. Sub-merchant agreements will include a cover page containing the following:

   1. An information summary box that provides key elements of the contract in a consolidated fashion using the template set out in Addendum I to the Code

   2. A fee disclosure box that includes a cost per transaction disclosure of card mix and volumes, and disclosure of fees as set out in the code.

   3. Another fee disclosure box that discloses all other fees (for example, monthly minimums) to be charged to the merchant. There is no prescribed template for the other fees disclosure box.

3. Payrix’s Partners are responsible for providing statements to the merchants through hard copy sent by post, soft copy distributed by email, or a merchant portal where applicable and available.

4. Payrix will provide Partners billing information that includes the following Code requirements that must be developed into the Partner’s statement creation system during implementation and will be periodically tested to ensure controls are being met appropriately:

   1. Effective merchant discount rate for each type of payment card from a PCNO network that the merchant accepts

   2. Interchange rates and, if applicable, all other rates charged to the merchants

   3. The number and volume of transactions for each type of payment transaction

   4. The total amount of fees applicable to each rate

   5. Details of each fee and to which PCNO they relate

Element 2: Notice of Fee Increase or New Fee Element

1. As Payrix would only increase fees directly applicable to its Partners, Payrix will provide a minimum of 120 days’ notice of any fee increases and 210 calendar days for domestic structural fee changes. The introduction of a new fee related to any credit or debit card transactions, or a reduction in applicable interchange rates. If Payrix’s Partners decide to make changes to fees due to this notice, Partners must provide their merchants with a minimum of 90 days’ notice of any fee increases, the introduction of a new fee related to any credit or debit card transactions, or a reduction in applicable interchange rates will be made applicable at least 30 days in advance of the change..

2. Payrix will provide partners with training and guidance during the implementation period, provide Partners with price change notification templates and conduct periodic testing to ensure controls are being met appropriately.

3. Payrix will ensure that the Price Change Notification Templates describe the nature of the fee change and clearly shows the difference to help sub-merchants better understand the impact of the fee change.

4. Upon written request, Payrix will provide the sub-merchant with an updated fee disclosure box reflecting the impact.

5. Notification is not required for fee changes made under pre-determined fee schedules, such as those based on sub-merchant sales volume, provided that the schedules are included in the sub-merchants contract.

Element 3: Contract Cancellation

Should Payrix or Payrix’s Partners increase fees, introduce a new fee related to any credit or debit card transactions, or not pass on the savings from a reduction in applicable interchange rates, merchants have the right to cancel their agreement with Payrix at any time with no penalty or termination fees.

Merchants may cancel their agreements related to the provision of Card processing, including Related Service Agreements without penalty within 70 calendar days about fee changes - but sub-merchants are free to exit their contract with Payrix at any time.

For greater certainty, if a merchant, on its own initiative, enters into separate contractual arrangements with an unrelated Downstream Participant or other entity, the contract with the separate Downstream Participant or other entity constitutes a separate agreement and is not considered a Related Service Agreement under the Code.

Element 4: No Obligation Acceptance

Payrix will not require sub-merchants to accept both credit and debit payments from the same payment card network. A sub-merchant can choose to accept only credit or debit payments from a network without having to accept both.

Element 5: Payment Method Discount Element

1. Payrix will not prohibit sub-merchants from providing discounts for different methods of payment (for example, cash, debit card, and credit card), as well as different levels of discounts among different payment card networks.

2. If sub-merchants choose to offer these types of discounts, they must clearly display the discounts at the point of sale.

Element 10: Negative-Option Acceptance

Should Payrix introduce new products or services, sub-merchants shall not be obligated to accept those new products or services. For Payrix to offer a new product or service, an updated contract with Partners and sub-merchants will be required.

Element 11: Contactless Payments

Payrix does not currently offer card-present capabilities in Canada. Should Payrix start offering card-present and contactless capabilities in the future, Payrix will ensure compliance with this Code element.

Element 12: Renewal and Cancellation Disclosure

1. Payrix does not have fixed-term contracts and sub-merchants can cancel their agreement with Payrix at any time without penalty.

2. This cancellation extends to related service contracts where there is a business connection between Payrix and other service providers where services are considered related and as a single service package.

Element 13: Complaint Handling Process

Merchants should have access to a clear dispute resolution process that provides for an investigation and timely response of complaints pertaining to the Code.

Payrix has established a Canada Compliance Guide on the online resource center that outlines the
complaint intake process. The Code Complaint Intake Process sets out the steps taken by Payrix’s
Partners and Payrix when receiving complaints from Canadian sub-merchants.