Interest, Fees and Charges

A surcharge is a fee that a business may pass onto its customers for choosing to make a payment for goods or services via a Credit, Debit or Charge Card, and is usually charged to cover the cost of processing the payment. While some businesses may include this in the cost of their goods or services, others may pass this on as an additional surcharge fee.

While American Express strongly opposes surcharging, it is a cost that a business can choose to pass on to a customer at their individual discretion.

The rates and fees on your Card will depend on the Card that you hold and your Account activity.

Complete fee information is available online, however standard fees include:

• Annual Fee: On some Cards, an annual fee is payable in return for richer rewards, features, and benefits. The rewards and benefits vary from Card to Card.
• Currency Conversion Fee: Payable when any charge is processed in a currency other than Australian dollars.
• Additional Statement Fee: Payable if you or an Additional Card Member requests an additional posted monthly paper statement. You may access statements free of charge through your Online Account.
• Dishonour Fee: Payable if there aren’t enough funds in your nominated Account to pay the Card Account or if the whole or part of a payment by Direct Debit is rejected.
• Late Payment Fee: Payable if you do not pay the minimum payment required on your Credit Card by the due date, as shown on your statement.
• Cash Advance Fee (enrolled Card Members only): Payable if you withdraw cash from your Credit Card Account from an ATM.
• Over The Counter Fee: Payable if you pay your Card Account in person at Australia Post.
• Record of Charge: Payable if you or an Additional Card Member requests a copy of an individual charge.
• Corporate Cash: A transaction fee applies to each withdrawal from an ATM. Applicable to Corporate Card holders only.

Your annual Card fee will be charged in the month when you first activate your Account. This will then be charged in the month of your Card Membership anniversary for each year of Card Membership following.

No. American Express offers a number of Personal Cards that do not have an annual fee. You can explore these options by clicking the link below.

American Express offers a range of International Payments solutions for businesses, which can be utilised by both existing and non-Card Members.

If you’re an existing FX International Payments customer, log in here. For non-Card Members, click the link below to learn more about the International Payments solutions we have on offer.

Learn more about International Payments

If your Card payment has been returned by your financial provider due to insufficient funds, we may charge a Dishonour Fee and any applicable Late Payment Fees based on the Terms and Conditions of your Card Member Agreement.

For enrolled Card Members only, the bank or operator who owns the ATM may charge you a fee for withdrawing cash on your Card. American Express also charges a Cash Advance Fee when you withdraw cash from an ATM using your Credit Card. This fee is $2.50 or 2% of the cash advance amount, whichever is greater.

For Corporate Card Members enrolled in the Corporate Cash program, cash withdrawn from an Automated Teller Machine (ATM) may incur a fee that will appear on your monthly statement separately from the cash withdrawal amount. Some ATM networks may apply an additional fee or surcharge for the use of their network.

Yes, you may be charged a Currency Conversion Fee*: This is a fee that is payable on charges processed in a currency other than Australian dollars, and is 3% of the converted amount.

Learn more about using your Credit Card abroad

*Currency Conversion Fees. If you make a charge in a currency other than Australian dollars, that charge will be converted into Australian dollars. The conversion will take place on the date the charge is processed by us, which may not be the same date you make the charge. If the charge is in U.S. dollars, it will be converted directly into Australian dollars. In all other cases, it will first be converted into U.S. dollars and then into Australian dollars. However, you will only be charged one Currency Conversion Fee. Unless a specific rate is required by law, conversion rates will be used based on interbank rates selected from customary industry sources on the business day prior to the processing date. If charges are converted by third parties prior to being submitted to us, any conversions made by those third parties will be at rates and may include a fee selected by them.

Interest is accrued on purchases made on your Credit Card, unless the amount owing is paid off in full by the statement due date each month. Interest is applied to your closing balance at the end of each day and then totaled up to calculate your monthly statement balance. Refer to your Card Member Agreement for a full breakdown of how interest is calculated.

An interest-free period or ‘interest-free days’ refers to a period of time in which no interest is charged on new purchases. Most American Express Credit Cards offer interest-free days of up to 44 or 55 days, and this is the maximum amount of time between making a purchase and interest being charged, depending on when the purchase is made in your statement cycle.

For example: If the statement period is 30 days and your Credit Card offers up to 55 interest-free days, you will have 25 days following your statement period end date to pay your closing balance and avoid being charged interest on the unpaid balance.

To be eligible for interest free days, the closing balance of the statement must be paid in full by the statement due date. The previous months’ statement must also be paid in full.

Hint: To maximise your Credit Card’s interest-free days, make your purchase on the day your new statement period begins and be sure to pay the closing balance by the due date shown.

If you pay your bill in full every month, you can avoid paying interest on your purchases. To stay on top of your balance to help you avoid paying interest, you can set up reminders via your Online Account or the Amex App. Here, you can schedule Payment Due reminders, Payment Received reminders as well as a number of spending alerts.

Note: This functionality is not currently available for David Jones Card Members.

There are different types of alerts offered by American Express which include push notifications from the App, and SMS messages and emails from your Online Account. To manage each type of Card alerts, follow the steps below.

Via your Online Account:

To turn on your email and SMS Card Alerts on:

1. Log in to your Online Account
2. Go to ‘Account Management’
3. Select ‘Alerts, Communications & Privacy’ then ‘Card Alerts’
4. Tick the box beside the Card you’d like to receive alerts for
5. Choose to receive alerts by email or SMS.

To turn your email and SMS Card Alerts off:

1. Log in to your Online Account
2. Go to ‘Account Management’
3. Select ‘Alerts, Communications & Privacy’ then ‘Card Alerts’
4. Untick the box beside the Card you’d like to stop receiving alerts for – or click ‘Hold Alerts’ and enter a date range.

Card Members also have the ability to update notifications from the Amex App.