Service Fees for Credit and Debit Card Payments

The Department of Tax Administration (DTA) offers the option to pay taxes and fees using a credit card or debit card as a convenience for residents and businesses of Fairfax County. We are, however, required by county ordinance to pass along the service fees imposed by the credit card companies to the card holder. Retail merchants typically absorb this cost, but the Fairfax County Code stipulates that, in the payment of taxes, service fees (also referred to as convenience fees or merchant fees) must be paid by the card holder, not by the county.

In order to offer this convenience and comply with credit/debit company by-laws and the county code, DTA uses a third-party processor to handle credit/debit card payments processed online, by phone, and in-person. This third-party processor is NIC-Virginia.

NIC-Virginia’s service fees are as follows:

• For Visa, MasterCard, Discover, and American Express credit card payments and MasterCard and Visa debit card payments - 2.35% on the total amount paid.
• This is NIC-Virginia’s service fee and does not represent revenue to Fairfax County.