Reserve Bank of Australia

C. Transaction Card Issuing

(Explanatory Notes)

This return [XLS 83K] collects statistics on the usage of transaction cards by card type. The reporting period runs to the last day of the calendar month. Stock items such as the number of accounts/facilities are to be reported as at the last day of the month.

The issuer is responsible for completing the return. The issuer is the organisation that provides a card, linked to an account, to its customers.

Go To

• C.1 Debit Accounts, Cards and Transactions
• C.2 Personal Credit and Charge – By type of credit
• C.3 Personal Credit and Charge – By type of card
• C.4 Commercial Credit and Charge

C.1 Debit Accounts, Cards and Transactions

This section covers transactions made using debit cards (including pre-paid cards), both proprietary and scheme, that are issued by the reporting institution.

Both PIN-authorised and signature-authorised debit cards should be included. Multi-function cards that can access deposit accounts should also be included.

Definitions of the terms used in this section are provided below.

Number of accounts/facilities	All deposit accounts/facilities that can be accessed by a debit or multi-function card. Accounts/facilities with more than one card are to be counted only once. Multiple deposit accounts/facilities that can be accessed using the same card are to be counted separately.
	Opened – The number of deposit accounts/facilities that were opened during the month that can be accessed by a debit card, as well as any existing accounts/facilities that have had debit card access added.
	Closed – The number of deposit accounts/facilities that were closed during the month that could be accessed by a debit card and had a nil balance. Accounts/facilities that are closed but do not have a nil balance should not be recorded as closed until the balance on the account is zero.
	At end of month – The number of deposit accounts/facilities that can be accessed by a debit card on the last day of the month.
Number of active accounts/facilities	The number of deposit accounts/facilities that can be accessed by a debit card that have had at least one debit transaction recorded during the month.
Number of cards on issue	With access to EFTPOS – The number of debit or multi-function cards on issue on the last day of the month which may be used to access funds in a deposit account held at an authorised deposit-taking institution through the proprietary EFTPOS network. Cards which may also access a deposit account through a network operated by a Scheme should be counted in this item as well as in the number of cards with access to Scheme Debit.
	With access to Scheme Debit – The number of debit or multi-function cards on issue on the last day of the month which may be used to access funds in a deposit account held at an authorised deposit-taking institution through a network operated by a Scheme. Cards which may also access a deposit account through the proprietary EFTPOS network should be counted in this item as well as in the number of cards with access to EFTPOS.

Note that the sum of cards With access to EFTPOS and With access to Scheme Debit need not give the total cards on issue.

Transactions	Over-the-counter (OTC) withdrawals – Transactions made to obtain cash over the counter at branches or agencies.
	ATM	Cash withdrawals – Transactions made to obtain cash from automated teller machines (ATMs). Figures reported for the value of ATM cash withdrawals should not include the value of any surcharges imposed by ATM owners on card holders at the time a transaction is undertaken (and thus deducted from their account along with the amount physically withdrawn). Only the amounts received by card holders should be reported.
		Domestic – Cash withdrawals made in Australia.
		International – Cash withdrawals made outside Australia.
	Total OTC and ATM transactions	The OTC withdrawals and ATM components added together.
	EFTPOS	Domestic – Transactions made in Australia through the proprietary EFTPOS network at a point of sale. This section also includes paper-based transactions that are used when electronic point-of-sale terminals are temporarily unavailable.
		of which:	Purchases only – Transactions made through the proprietary EFTPOS network at a point of sale in Australia to obtain goods and services, but not cash. The figures reported for both the number and value of purchases should be net of refunds (ie. if a customer returns goods or services and the purchase price is refunded, the reported figures should reflect the cancellation of the purchase transaction, netting the refund against the original transaction). On the other hand, if a ‘refund’ is given without a good/service return, such a refund should have no impact on the reported figures (ie. there is no netting as there is nothing to net against).
			Cash-outs only – Transactions made through the proprietary EFTPOS network at a point of sale in Australia to obtain cash, but not goods and services.
			Combined purchases and cash-outs – Transactions made through the proprietary EFTPOS network at a point of sale in Australia to obtain both goods and services and cash. The value for such transactions is to be split into the purchase and cash-out components. Refer Purchases only above for treatment of refunds.
			Credit EFTPOS – Transactions made through the proprietary EFTPOS network at a point of sale in Australia to transfer funds from merchants to cardholders’ accounts. These transactions involve the use of the EFTPOS deposit transaction facility to be introduced in 2008.
	Total EFTPOS transactions	The Purchases only, Cash-outs only, Combined purchases and cash-outs and Credit EFTPOS components added together.
	Scheme Debit	Domestic – Transactions made at a point of sale in Australia through a network operated by a Scheme. This section also includes paper-based transactions that are used when electronic point-of-sale terminals are temporarily unavailable.
		of which:	Purchases only – Transactions made through a network operated by a Scheme at a point of sale in Australia to obtain goods and services, but not cash. The figures reported for both the number and value of purchases should be net of refunds (ie. if a customer returns goods or services and the purchase price is refunded, the reported figures should reflect the cancellation of the purchase transaction, netting the refund against the original transaction).
			Cash-outs only – Transactions made through a network operated by a Scheme at a point of sale in Australia to obtain cash, but not goods and services.
			Combined purchases and cash-outs – Transactions made through a network operated by a Scheme at a point of sale in Australia to obtain both goods and services and cash. Refer Purchases only above for treatment of refunds.
			Note that Cash-outs only and Combined purchases and cash-outs transactions are not currently offered, so should be left blank until such time as they are.
		International – All transactions made outside Australia at a point of sale. This includes paper-based transactions that are used when electronic point of sale terminals are temporarily unavailable. The figures reported for both the number and value of transactions should be net of refunds (ie. if a customer returns goods or services and the purchase price is refunded, the reported figures should reflect the cancellation of the purchase transaction, netting the refund against the original transaction).
	Total Scheme debit transactions	The Domestic and International Scheme Debit components added together.
Total debit card issuing	The Total OTC and ATM transactions, Total EFTPOS and the Total Scheme debit components added together.

C.2, C.3 & C.4 Credit and Charge Accounts, Cards and Transactions

These sections cover general-purpose credit cards and charge cards issued to individuals or businesses.

A general-purpose credit or charge card can be used at many different merchants to make transactions. It is different from a store card, which can only be used at a limited number of merchants.

A credit card enables a cardholder to access a revolving credit facility. The cardholder can use the card to make transactions up to a pre-arranged limit.

A charge card enables a cardholder to access a non-revolving credit facility. Charge cards often do not have an explicit credit limit.

Cards that can access both debit accounts and credit accounts should be included in this section.

Definitions of the terms used in these sections are provided below.

C.2 Personal Credit and Charge – By type of credit

Personal	Credit or charge cards issued to personal customers.
With interest-free period	Credit cards that have a feature where, under certain conditions, interest is not charged on a purchase for a period of time.
Without interest-free period	Credit cards that do not have an interest-free period.
Total credit cards	The with interest-free period and without interest-free period series added together.
Total charge cards	All personal charge cards.
Number of accounts/facilities	Opened The number of credit or charge accounts/facilities that were opened during the month.
	Closed The number of credit or charge accounts/facilities that were closed during the month. Accounts/facilities that are closed but do not have a nil balance should not be recorded as closed until the balance on the account is zero.
	At end of month The number of credit or charge accounts/facilities that can be accessed by a credit or charge card on the last day of the month.
Number of active accounts/facilities	The number of credit or charge accounts/facilities that have had at least one transaction recorded during the month.
Number of cards on issue	The number of credit or charge cards on issue on the last day of the month.
Transactions	Cash advances – Transactions made to obtain cash. Cash advances can be made at financial institutions, at ATMs and at Bank@Post. This section does not include BPAY transactions that are made using a credit card account at a merchant that does not accept BPAY payments from credit accounts. Figures reported for the value of cash advances should not include the value of any surcharges imposed by ATM owners on card holders at the time a transaction is undertaken (and thus deducted from their account along with the amount physically withdrawn). Only the amounts received by card holders should be reported.
	Domestic – Transactions made in Australia to obtain cash.
	International – Transactions made outside Australia to obtain cash.
	Purchases – Transactions made to obtain goods and services. This section does not include BPAY transactions that are made using a credit card account at a merchant that accepts BPAY payments from credit accounts. The figures reported for both the number and value of purchases should be net of refunds (ie. if a customer returns goods or services and the purchase price is refunded, the reported figures should reflect the cancellation of the purchase transaction, netting the refund against the original transaction).
	Domestic – Transactions made in Australia to obtain goods and services.
	International – Transactions made outside Australia to obtain goods and services.
Total credit/charge card issuing	The Cash advances and Purchases components added together.
Repayments	Repayments of credit or charge card account balances owed, including payments of interest, fees, penalties and other charges billed to the account during the month.
Advances outstanding	Accruing interest or penalties – Any part of total balances outstanding on the last day of the month on which the customer has been charged interest or penalties during the month.
Total advances outstanding	The total value of outstanding balances owed on credit and charge cards, whether or not incurring interest charges or penalties, on the last day of the month. This item includes balances not yet billed, balances billed but not yet due, and balances due but not yet paid. This item does not include any amounts on cards where the account has a credit balance.
Limits	New and increased – The value of credit limits on new cards, and the value of any increased credit limits on existing cards during the month.
Total limits	The value of all approved limits for cards, whether used or unused, on the last day of the month. Personal charge cards, which typically do not have explicit limits, are excluded. However, some institutions issue commercial charge cards (or non-revolving credit cards) that do have explicit limits. These should be included in C.4.

C.3 Personal Credit and Charge – By type of card

Standard	Credit or charge cards other than those defined as ‘premium’ by the scheme to which they belong.
Premium	Credit or charge cards that are defined as ‘premium’ by the scheme to which they belong. In the case of four-party schemes, a premium card is one that attracts a ‘premium’ interchange fee under scheme rules.

Other terms used in this section are as defined in section C.2.

C.4 Commercial Credit and Charge

Commercial	All credit or charge cards that are issued to commercial customers.
Credit cards	Commercial cards that offer a revolving credit facility.
Charge cards	Commercial cards that offer a non-revolving credit facility. The outstanding balance on a non-revolving credit facility must be paid in full by a specified date.
Total	The Credit card and Charge card series added together.

Other terms used in this section are as defined in section C.2.

Please send an electronic version of the completed return to payments@rba.gov.au.