Processing fees allow you to recover the cost of credit card transactions without requiring manual adjustments. Once activated, Flex automatically adds a small, configurable percentage to each card payment, ensuring those fees are tracked transparently and allocated to the correct revenue account. This setup helps you maintain accuracy in billing and protects your margins when members pay by card.
This article explains how to enable and configure processing fees, define custom rates for different card types, and ensure that fees are applied correctly to both new and existing invoices.
Before you start
Start with the basics. Read [Flex] Processing Fees for Credit Card Payments – Start Here for an overview of how this feature fits into your billing setup.
Set up a payment gateway. You must have at least one connected payment gateway (for example, Stripe or GoCardless) before activating processing fees.
Check your legal obligations. In some regions, adding a surcharge requires visible disclosure or explicit terms in your member agreements. Confirm compliance before activation.
Decide on your default and card-specific rates. Prepare the percentages you plan to apply for Visa, Mastercard, American Express, and other cards.
Know your billing policies. Once activated, fees automatically apply to all unpaid invoices and future card payments.
Set up processing fees for card payments
To set up processing fees, follow these steps:
Open the Flex Admin Portal and go to
Settings > Billing > Billing Rules and open the Fees tab.In the Processing Fees section, click Activate Processing Fees.
Select Remove processing fees for debit cards if you want to remove processing fees for debit card charges.
Set the default fees as a percentage (%) of the invoice charge. You can set that for Visa, Mastercard, American Express, and other card types. Each option specifies a certain fee, depending on the type of card that is used for the payment. The "Generic Card" fee will be used for any other card types or cards without a specified fee percentage.
Click Save Changes.
When the processing fees are set up:
The fees will apply to all previously created invoices that have not yet been paid.
The fees will automatically apply to all invoice payments processed after the processing fees have been set up.
These fees will also appear in the order summary.
Tips for success
Always check your local and national laws before activating processing fees. In many regions, clear notice is legally required.
Use clear terms in member agreements and post visible notices if processing fees apply.
Set specific fees for card types if your provider charges different rates for Visa, Mastercard, or American Express.
Processing fees are applied to invoices at the time of payment. Therefore, turning off this feature prevents fees from being applied to future payments.
If a billing lock date is in place, the system cannot add processing fees to invoices that are locked.