BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 15. Interchange tariffs
applied between participants of payment systems were amended in
Azerbaijan, Trend
reports via the Central Bank of Azerbaijan (CBA).


By Decision No. 12/1 of the CBA Management Board dated March 18,
2026, the upper limit of interchange (service fee tariffs) applied
between participants of payment systems was approved, and at the
same time, the interchange tariffs applied in payments under the
Instant Payments System (IPS) were aligned with the upper limits of
interchange determined for payment cards.


According to the amendments, the upper limits of interchange on
payment cards have been reduced by 0.25% points in the areas of
activity of the relevant economic entities compared to the
currently valid tariffs. The main goal is to reduce the costs of
acquirers and create conditions for reducing the service fee
applied to economic entities for accepting non-cash payments.


Through QR code-based payments processed through IPS, it is
aimed to reduce the costs of economic entities related to accepting
non-cash payments, increase accessibility to payment services, and
expand the scope of application of account-based payments.
Increasing the use of QR code payments will create a basis for the
formation of alternative payment solutions and ultimately increase
their competitiveness in the payment market.


In general, when regulating interchange tariffs by the CBA, the
interests of both economic entities, issuers and acquirers, are
taken into account, and a balanced policy is applied by optimizing
the costs of accepting non-cash payments.







The amendments to the IPS service fee tariffs will come into
effect from May 1, 2026, and the approved interchange limits for
payment cards will come into effect from June 1, 2026.


The IPS service fee rates that will be applied from May 1, 2026,
can be found at: https://uploads.cbar.az/assets/a3b39b3d77cd0dc2253dbc7ae.pdf


The decision on the "Upper limit of interchange applied between
participants of payment systems" can be found at: https://uploads.cbar.az/assets/90fe3b6961dc76e51b45b9176.pdf