Originally Posted by ftrichard

This is timely as I'm off to Perth in a week's time and noticed that the hotel imposes a 2% fee on credit card payments. I'm using points. Haha. That's foiled their little scheme.

My question about Australia and NZ is whether the hotels that charge this make any distinction between a foreign credit card or a foreign debit card. For example, a MasterCard credit card vs a MasterCard debit card.

My understanding is that MC debit cards incur a far lower processing charge than a MC credit card but I cannot see any indication on the plastic card itself that it's a debit card. In earlier times, MC issued what it called Maestro cards that were known to be debit cards but these are being phased out and replaced with MasterCard Debit Cards. Doubtless Visa has similar distinctions between credit and debit cards as they are pretty indistinguishable businesses.

If the 2% charge is strictly for credit cards then (a) does the hotel not charge the levy on foreign debit cards; and (b) how does it know before it adds the fee and processes the transaction?

Using credit cards in this way for foreign transactions is a complete mug's game IMO because it's not a 2% levy, it's a 5% levy including the card issuer's common 3% forex charge. So, whatever credit card points I'm getting actually cost an additional 5% in such places in Australia which doesn't make financial sense. I avoid this using a Revolut debit card that withdraws the amount from an account in that currency.

In Samui, many tourist restaurants add 3% for card payments of any type because they cannot distinguish between credit and debit cards (they tell me). I avoid these places as a matter of principle as (a) they are more pricey than Thai street food and target tourists who will want to pay with plastic so just add the 3% to the prices already if you cannot swallow the cost of doing business; and (b) I've not found any restaurant so far in Bangkok that charges this additional fee so it's gouging pure and simple in the paradise that is Samui.