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ServiceM8 makes it easy to take in person & online card payments, with no extra hardware or terminals required. This is possible through our integration with Stripe, a world-leading payment processor, which lets you accept credit and debit card payments without having to set up a merchant bank account. Check out this article for more information on how accepting payment with ServiceM8 works, and how to get started. Card payment processing is a service — when you process a card payment, Stripe will hold the funds for a short period, then deposit them into your nominated account, minus a transaction fee. The fee structure works on a pay-as-you-go basis, per transaction. You can find the fees for your region below: All everyday transactions we pay for with credit and debit cards incur processing fees — in many cases, the vendor wont charge you extra for paying by card, opting instead to treat the provision of this service and its fees as a cost of doing business, and factoring the cost into their pricing. In other cases, the vendor may choose to add a processing fee as a surcharge when you opt to pay by credit or debit card, to cover the cost that way. ServiceM8 offers different options for how you want to handle processing fees for payments accepted via ServiceM8 and Stripe. To set this up, go to Settings > Preferences > Invoicing > Card Payments: You can choose to:
  • Never add a processing fee surcharge for card payments
  • Add a processing fee for payments over $500
  • Add a processing fee for payments over $1,000
  • Add a processing fee for payments over $2,000
  • Add a processing fee for payments over $5,000
  • Always add a processing fee surcharge for card payments
When a surcharge is added to the payment amount, ServiceM8 will automatically add a surcharge line item to the jobs list of Materials/Services, update the invoice total, and sync the invoice details to your accounting software. If you send the invoice to a client, and approve it to your accounting software, then the client pays the invoice by card (with a surcharge), the surcharge will be added to the job in ServiceM8, and automatically update the invoice details in your accounting software.

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Important Notes

  • Some countries/states/jurisdictions prohibit the practice of adding surcharges for card payment processing fees in many or all scenarios e.g. the United Kingdom. It’s your responsibility to comply with surcharging rules applicable to you, so please familiarise yourself with your local laws & rules before setting the automatic addition of a surcharge for card payments.
  • If you’re using the Stripe Payments add-on: the surcharge added will be the percentage portion of the processing fee only, excluding the fixed portion e.g. if the fee in your region is 1.95% + 30 cents, the surcharge added for the client will be 1.95% only, and your business will pay the 30c fixed portion.
  • If you’re using the ServiceM8 Pay add-on: the surcharge added will be the full processing fee e.g. if the fee in your region is 1.95% + 30 cents, the surcharge added for the client will be 1.95% + 30c.
  • If you’re in the United States: due to Visa and Mastercard requirements, processing fees cannot be passed on for debit card transactions (i.e. your business will pay the processing fee if the client uses a debit card). Further, if you use the Stripe Payments add-on, surcharges for credit card transactions in the USA are capped at 3.00% e.g. if the client uses a standard credit card with a fee of 3.10% + 30c, they will pay a surcharge of 3.00%, and your business will pay the remaining 0.10% + 30c.
  • If you’re in Canada: due to Visa and Mastercard requirements, processing fees cannot be passed on for debit card transactions (i.e. your business will pay the processing fee if the client uses a debit card). Further, if you use the Stripe Payments add-on, surcharges for credit card transactions in Canada are capped at 2.40% e.g. if the client uses a standard credit card with a fee of 3.10% + 30c, they will pay a surcharge of 2.40%, and your business will pay the remaining 0.70% + 30c.
Last modified on February 10, 2026