Oregon’s Pricing Transparency Law Is Now in Effect (SB430) – What It Means for Surcharging (Effective Jan 1, 2026)
Oregon’s new pricing transparency law (SB430) took effect January 1, 2026 and applies specifically to online sellers. In short: if you advertise or display a price online, Oregon generally expects the first price a customer sees to include any and all required fees they must pay to complete the transaction, subject to a few narrow exceptions.
This recent legislation is indicative of the overall trend towards price transparency and optimizing for consumer choice, and means that e-commerce companies may need to re-think checkout and conversion flows to stay compliant.
The rule
If a fee is required to complete the purchase, sellers should reflect this in the initial advertised/listed price.
What can be excluded (with conditions)
SB430 allows the first displayed price to exclude:
- Taxes or government-imposed fees
- Reasonable shipping charges (or reasonable charges actually incurred to provide the services)
- A service fee calculated based on distance or a purchaser’s selections – but it must be disclosed prominently before the purchaser agrees to pay
Where this intersects with credit card surcharging
This is the nuance for payments teams: a credit card surcharge is a fee tied to the payment method. SB430’s practical question becomes: is the surcharge “mandatory” for this shopper in this checkout path?
Here are the surcharging scenarios that matter:
- You offer a non-surcharged payment option (and the shopper can choose it). If you’re surcharging compliantly, the surcharge applies only when the purchaser selects credit. The surcharge isn’t a fee that every purchaser must pay to complete the transaction. In that case, the key is making sure the surcharge is clearly and prominently disclosed before the purchaser agrees to pay.
- Credit card is the only practical way to pay online. If every purchaser must pay the surcharge to complete the transaction (because the checkout only supports credit card), it starts looking like an unavoidable fee, which is exactly what SB430 is aimed at. In that case, the safer approach is to ensure Oregon shoppers see the surcharge included in the first advertised price. Besides being noncompliant with network rules, this approach now poses a serious risk in Oregon.
- Pricing varies based on bundles or purchaser selections (plus any payment-method fees). The hard part in practice is deciding which fees belong in the first displayed price when totals can change based on bundling options or purchaser selections. If your total changes across shipping choices, service options, or payment method, pressure-test the customer journey so fees are surfaced prominently before the purchaser agrees to pay, and avoid pushing required charges to the final step.
Who’s exempt
SB430 does not apply to financial institutions, mortgage bankers, mortgage brokers, or providers of broadband internet access services.
What you should do now to be compliant with surcharging
- Scope: Identify all checkout flows that sell from Oregon or ships/sells to customers located in Oregon
- Validate “avoidable” surcharging: Confirm you offer a non-surcharged payment path (e.g., debit/ACH) and that the surcharge is applied only when credit is selected. QA edge cases: saved card flows, express checkout/wallets, subscriptions, etc. or anywhere the payment method can bypass normal UI steps
- Harden disclosure in the funnel: Test the full journey product page → cart → payment selection → final review/submit (desktop + mobile). The surcharge should be clearly labeled, appear before the customer agrees to pay, and stay consistent in the final total (no last-second add-ons)
- Lock internal language + evidence: Standardize the same surcharge terms across checkout UI, receipts/invoices, confirmations,and FAQs. Keep a short internal note describing when the surcharge shows and screenshots of the key disclosure moments for Oregon so Product / Support / Marketing stay aligned
Interested in learning more about the most compliant way to accept payments and apply surcharges in an increasingly complex environment?
