EventsAir Pay powered by Stripe supports applying optional surcharges based on the payment method used.
You can set up surcharges in Setup Panel > Financial, as part of setting up or updating an EventsAir Pay fee type.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
Whether to apply surcharges to payment methods, and if so, how much, are business decisions that must be made solely by you and your organization, based on any relevant legal, financial, and other considerations. Regulations vary by country and region. It’s your responsibility to ensure your surcharge settings align with local regulations.
We can give general information on how to apply surcharges.
We CANNOT give any legal or financial advice, including any recommendations as to whether or not you should apply surcharges, rate/amount to charge, or similar.
Your options for fees/surcharges under an EventsAir Pay powered by Stripe Payment Type are:
Absorb fees (no surcharge is applied to any payment method)
On-charge fees - flat rate (every payment method has the same surcharge)
On-charge fees - by payment method (you decide for each payment method whether or not to include it in your EventsAir Pay configuration for this event; and whether to add a surcharge)
The last option lets you set different surcharge percentages (including 0%) based on the payment method - the following are supported:
Credit/Debit cards (you can configure charges based on card category e.g., domestic, premium, international, cross-border - see note below).
Other Stripe Payment Methods (e.g., Alipay, iDEAL, Klarna) - you can set different charges for each payment method.
Selected Wallet Payment Methods (Link, Apple Pay, Google Pay) You can't add a charge amount for these, but the relevant charge will apply for whichever credit card is used.
See screenshot below - note the amounts have been blanked out, and payment methods shown are strictly for illustrative purposes.
The payment methods you see in this screen will match the available payment methods in your EventsAir Pay Stripe account dashboard.
You can choose to disable (uncheck) certain payment methods for this event. You can also drag to change the display order of payment methods (how they'll appear on interactive sites in that event).
The Credit/Debit Cards option is enabled by default and placed in the first position in the payment order. It cannot be moved (but can be disabled).
Credit/Debit card categories
Domestic Cards: Issued in the same country as the merchant.
Premium Cards: High-end rewards cards, such as AMEX, Discover, or Diners Club; may be domestic or international.
International Cards: Issued in a different country from the merchant.
Cross-border Cards: Issued outside the merchant’s country but within the EU/EEA or UK.
Default EventsAir Pay in new/cloned events
Any new or cloned events will have a default EventsAir Pay gateway added to External Connections in the event, if one is available (i.e. if EventsAir Pay has been configured in Application Setup).
The EventsAir Pay default is selected based on the below:
EventsAir Pay powered by AirWallex (default if available)
EventsAir Pay powered by Stripe (if you only have one, it'll be the default)
EventsAir Pay powered by Stripe - alphabetical order (if you have multiple of these, the first one listed will be the default)
You can see the EventsAir Pay gateway under External Connections in the event. (You still need to add an e-commerce reference).
You can change the default EventsAir Pay gateway, if you have others available, either when creating/cloning the event, or when setting up the event.
If you want to also add a third-party payment gateway under External Connections, you can only use this on interactive sites WITHOUT EventsAir Pay enabled. (See more information below).
New/Cloned Events - Payment Types
Payment Types can be reviewed/added in the Setup Panel, under Financial.
For new or cloned events, even when EventsAir Pay is enabled in the event, the default Payment Types include MasterCard and Visa - see information below.
You need to add an EventsAir Pay Payment Type so you can use it on registration sites (It will process credit/debit cards including Mastercard & Visa).
MasterCard & Visa - Payment Types
In the default Payment Types for MasterCard and Visa in your event, you'll see options to "Enable for Online Registration" and absorb or on-charge fees. Those settings ONLY apply if you're using a third-party payment gateway. (See information below about configuring your interactive site Payment Page).
MasterCard, Visa, and other cards - Payment Methods
If you want to on-charge fees to MasterCard and Visa (and any other credit/debit cards) when used as a payment method, processed via EventsAir Pay, and don't want to use the flat-rate option, use the "Credit/Debit Cards" section of the EventsAir Pay Payment Type.
You can choose different options for different card types (Domestic, International, Premium, and Cross-border):
Configuring your registration site
Payment page
To ensure there's no confusion about which payment gateway is processing your online payments, when you enable EventsAir Pay on your payment page, it disables other payment gateway options.
(The reverse also happens, so you need to create a separate interactive site if you want any payments processed by a third-party payment gateway.)
Localization (Interactive Site)
There are also some localization options (interactive site - Details tab, Localization) to help you tailor payment method labels and instructions:
Error messages can also be localized (if you want to change what the customer sees in each of these scenarios):
Trigger | Error Message sent to the attendee |
When clicking the Credit /Debit Card payment option: |
|
Stripe API keys blank/missing (live or test depending on mode) OR ConnectedAccountId blank on the linked account | "Payment is not available for this event." |
Stripe API throws StripeException | "We couldn't start your payment. Please try again." |
When clicking Continue button in the Card form: |
|
BaseAmount is negative | "Invalid payment amount." |
ConnectedAccountId blank on the linked account | "Payment is not available for this event." |
PaymentTypeId not found in event cache | "Payment type not found." |
Stripe API throws StripeException (either account fetch or payment method fetch) | "We couldn't verify your card details. Please try again or use a different card." |
How it looks on a registration site
If you add surcharges based on payment method in your EventsAir Pay setup, attendees will see the surcharge/fee amount after they choose a payment method, and see the final amount before they pay (as is required in many regions).
The Payment Page will display only the payment methods that have been enabled in the Payment Type Setup screen and in the configured order, AND that are available based on the attendee’s device and location (e.g., Apple Pay will not be displayed on a non-Apple device); regional payment methods will only be shown where they're available.
It looks similar to the below - the amounts shown are purely for illustrative purposes and are not designed to suggest a specific surcharge rate or payment method.
For Credit/Debit cards, the words "Fees - Calculated at Checkout" are used until the actual card number is entered (and card type determined). Similarly, if Wallet payment methods are selected, the surcharge amount will depend on the card chosen (so the amount will be calculated at Checkout).
Again, the image below is used purely for illustrative purposes.
EventsAir never stores the card details. All payments are processed in Stripe's secure environment.
Updating existing events / interactive sites
These changes take effect in mid-May 2026, and no changes will be made to existing events - you need to manually update payment surcharge settings in payment types if changes are needed. [You can also change your surcharge configuration during an event and this will be applied to any future payments in that event.]
If you have an existing interactive site with a payment page that includes both EventsAir Pay AND another e-commerce gateway, that configuration will stay as it is, unless you re-save the site. Once you re-save the site, if EventsAir Pay is enabled, any other e-commerce gateways will be disabled.
Refunds
For refunds, surcharge handling follows Stripe’s rules and your own refund policy.
Where do surcharges go?
Generally speaking, you may choose to add a surcharge to offset payment processing costs. This is why the full amount of any surcharge you choose to add will go directly into your account (the account you nominate when setting it up).
Communication to attendees
Attendees may ask you why there is a payment surcharge. How you respond is up to you, however you could explain this reflects the cost of processing that payment method, and offer other payment methods if available.
Changes to payment surcharge policies in various regions (including Australia)
In some regions, policies may prevent specific payment surcharges.
Using selective charges may allow you to remove charges on some categories of cards or payment methods while retaining them on others.
While we'll do our best to pass on any relevant information regarding major changes to such policies, you're responsible for complying with any relevant legislation. Also, we can only pass on information once it's available from official sources.
In regions where payment surcharges are not permitted, payment processing costs are often factored into the total amount charged (for registration, for example), in a similar way to other normal costs of business (venue hire, electricity, insurance etc.)