Can I charge a convience fee and is it taxable

Hi there, @jsmith2232.

Yes, you can charge the customer for the convenience fee, but it would be best to seek the assistance of an accountant to know the type of business and type of payment made but the customer if the fee is relevant.

You can create a service item for this, here's how:

1. On the left navigation pane, go to Sales then Products and Services.
2. Click New then select Non-inventory or Service.
3.  Put a checkmark in I sell this product/service to my customers checkbox. 
4. Enter a description.in the Sales information section, as well as the Sales price/rate.
5. If you need to track sales tax, select Taxable - standard rate from the Sales tax category dropdown. If the item has a special tax rate, select Choose a special category and find the best option.
6. Once done, click Save and Close.

Let me share this article to help you with the process: Add product and service items to QuickBooks Online.

You can also change product and service item types in QuickBooks Online that you've added.

Feel free to ask additional questions, I'll be glad to assist you further.

@jsmith2232 

Yes a surcharge is current income bu the first thing is to check your state laws, there are some states where surcharging for using a CC is illegal.

For those states that are ok with it, there is still a problem. You are required to put a notice on the store, the check out pages, and on the receipt it must specify the surcharge item and amount, that you surcharge for using a CC and how much, the law says a % is not legal.

In addition to that, you are not allowed to surcharge when a debit or prepaid card is used at all. So if you are taking payments on line I don't see how you can know whether or not a card is a prepaid or debit card in advance.

You would have to create a service type item called surcharge and include it on the invoice for the customer, that would mean you know in advance they will use a CC, and not a debit or prepaid card

Best option is just raise your prices slightly, or accept that a merchant charge is just a cost of doing business.