title: US-MT — Merchant Acquiring & Risk (W8) | World Payments Monitor canonical: https://payments.gi/jurisdictions/united-states-montana/w8/ ### W8 Merchant Acquiring & Risk Uncertain re-verified 2026-10-18 · changed 2026-07-05 Montana merchant acquiring operates under the general federal card-network framework, with the state's own footprint limited to the surcharge disclosure practice; no distinct MCC/chargeback statute identified. Standing sub-brief · as of 5 July 2026 97 words · last cycle 2026-07-05 #### Merchant Acquiring & Risk Montana merchant acquiring operates under the general federal card-network framework, without a distinct state-specific regime for high-risk merchants, MCC-based classification, or chargeback handling. The state's own regulatory footprint in this space is effectively limited to the surcharge-disclosure practice addressed at W4; no Montana-specific statute governing merchant-category-code risk tiers or chargeback procedures was identified in this cycle's research. #### Outlook This is treated as a stable baseline absence rather than an active gap requiring near-term monitoring; any future Montana legislative activity on merchant acquiring would most likely arrive bundled with surcharge or card-scheme legislation (W4). no periodic updates on record for this sub-brief ** Sources and findings (3 unique sources · R-3/R-4)** 1. [W8-E1] T3 Derived: Probable [in_force https://merchantcostconsulting.com/lower-credit-card-processing-fees/montana-surcharge-laws/](https://merchantcostconsulting.com/lower-credit-card-processing-fees/montana-surcharge-laws/) re-verified 2026-07-05 Montana merchants face typical credit card processing costs of 2-4% per transaction, comprising interchange, assessment and processor markup fees, informing merchant decisions between surcharging, cash-discount programs, or fee absorption under the state's 2025 surcharge disclosure regime. 2. [W8-E2] T1 Derived: Confirmed [in_force https://law.justia.com/codes/montana/title-61/chapter-3/part-1/section-61-3-117/](https://law.justia.com/codes/montana/title-61/chapter-3/part-1/section-61-3-117/) re-verified 2026-07-05 MCA 61-3-117 governs how Montana state agencies process card payments and pass through associated financial-institution fees, functioning as the closest analogue to a state-level acquiring/fee-passthrough rule for government merchant transactions. 3. [W8-E3] T4 Derived: Uncertain [in_force https://963theblaze.com/why-am-i-being-charged-a-fee-to-use-my-card-at-montana-merchants/](https://963theblaze.com/why-am-i-being-charged-a-fee-to-use-my-card-at-montana-merchants/) re-verified 2026-07-05 Debit card surcharging is prohibited under Visa/Mastercard network rules even where credit card surcharging is permitted, and Montana consumers report increasing merchant fee pass-through at point of sale following the 2025 surcharge law.