Interac 

DEBIT
for Merchants

What is Interac Debit?   Why offer Interac Debit?   How Interac Debit works? Interac Debit at Point-of-Sale   Refunds with Interac Debit   Cashback   How to offer Interac Debit   Interac Debit fees and surcharges

What is Interac Debit?

Interac Debit is a secure and convenient electronic payment option that allows your customers to use their Interac debit card and get instant access to the finds in their bank account.

Interac Debit is available to you 24 hours a day, seven days a week, so it can be available to your customers during your normal business hours. 

Most payment terminals can be upgraded to accept Interac Debit with the installation of a PIN pad and the addition of some software.

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Why offer Interac Debit?

Improve your customer satisfaction by offering the everyday payment solution used by 20 million Canadians every day.

Increase your efficiency and profitability:

  • Potential for increased sales from customers who carry little or no cash,
  • Reduce your chance of loss due to cash mishandling or theft
  • Easy to implement – Interac Debit can be simply integrated into your existing technology
  • An economical transaction fee.

Security you can trust:

  • No chargebacks with the Interac good funds model,
  • Leverages the added security of chip technology, and
  • With the Interac Zero Liability Policy, your customers can use Interac Debit with confidence.

As a merchant, you are guaranteed funds with every approved transaction.  You'll receive a deposit directly to your business account the next business day for all Interac Debit transactions. 

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How Interac Debit works

Interac Debit purchases are passed through the Interac Network where your customer’s financial institution verifies their PIN and funds before the approval is returned to your Point-of-Sale terminal. At this point the transfer of funds to your business account will occur. For specific details please contact your Acquirer.

See how it works at Point of Sale.

Interac Debit at Point-of-Sale

When you ring up a sale by swiping or inserting the customer’s Interac Debit card, you will be prompted to enter the purchase amount into your Point-of-Sale terminal.  Your customer will then be prompted to:

  • Okay the transaction amount
  • Select the chequing or savings account that is to be debited
  • Enter their Personal Identification Number (PIN)
  • Provide a final okay to send the transaction request for approval

 Upon completion of a successful purchase, your customer will retrieve their debit card and a copy of the transaction receipt.

Refunds with Interac Debit

Refunds and exchanges are a matter of merchant policy. However, refunds can be processed through the Interac Debit service, providing the cardholder is present to authorize the refund transaction.

Cashback

When you offer the Interac Debit service you also have the option of offering a courtesy service to your customers known as "cashback". That is, a service offered to retail customers whereby an extra amount of cash is added to the total purchase price of a debit card transaction.  

For example, a customer makes a purchase for $20 and requests an additional $40 cashback. If you choose to offer this service, you would add $40 to the $20 purchase amount for a total of $60, and give your customer $40 cashback.

It is entirely up to individual merchants to decide if they wish to offer this option.

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How to offer Interac Debit to your customers

Your first step in offering Interac Debit to your customers is to contact a service provider, also known as an Acquirer.  For a complete list of Acquirer Members that offer the Interac Debit service, please refer to our list of Acquirers.

Merchant Fees

For more information on Merchant Fees, please click here.

Interac Debit surcharge fees

Interac Association members may choose to apply a surcharge for transactions made using Interac services. A surcharge is a fee charged by the member responsible for the debit terminal.

Interac Association maintains strict rules to ensure that surcharges are properly disclosed on the PIN pad screen. Customers are allowed to cancel the purchase transaction with no charge if they do not agree to pay the surcharge fee.

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