PayPal have announced the PayPal Policy updates due to come into effect on the 5th of March 2020. The good news is that there are no changes for UK users on fees but the bad news is on refunds where PayPal will keep the original fees.

PayPal Policy Updates – Fees

The standard rate for receiving domestic commercial transaction payments stays at 2.90% + Fixed Fee for the UK, but for some countries it changes to 3.40% + Fixed Fee.

PayPal Policy Updates – Refunds

If you refund a Commercial Transaction payment, there are no fees to make the refund, but the fees you originally paid to receive the payment are not returned to you. (For some reason, this does not apply to users registered with PayPal as residents of Ireland who do still get their fees back).

“If you carry out a refund of a Commercial Transaction payment, all of the fees originally paid by you to receive the payment will not be returned to you.”

– PayPal

PayPal Policy Updates – 2nd January 2020

It’s worth remembering that the last set of fee changes PayPal announced kicked in on the first working day of the year. PayPal reduced the fees they charge for receiving card payments using the PayPal Virtual Terminal Product and (as part of the Custom Card Fields product) the PayPal Virtual Terminal Online Card Payment Service.

PayPal Merchant Rate

It is worth a reminder that the old PayPal merchant rate was retired and there is a new programme in place which you have to apply for. It offers what PayPal are now calling Tiered Rates. You can apply when logged into your PayPal account at paypal.com/businesswallet/applymra

The form will only appear if you are eligible and PayPal appear to be doing their best to hide eligibility requirements if you don’t qualify! All PayPal do reveal is that to qualify your account must be in good standing and not under investigation and have received more than the Tier 1 ceiling amount (in the original opening currency of your account) in commercial transaction payments in the previous calendar month, but they don’t say what the Tier 1 ceiling might be… (we suspect because it may be different for different people).