For accounts with unlimited debit transactions, you will continue to enjoy the benefit of unlimited debit transactions with no transaction fees including for transit, such as ticket purchases, tap to pay at the fare reader, or reloading your transit card.

For eligible accounts with a limited number of monthly debit transactions, purchases made at transit authorities classified by Interac as the following Merchant Category Code (MCC): “Local and Suburban Commuter Passenger Transportation, including ferries,” will not count towards your limit and will not incur excess debit fees. This includes ticket purchases, tap to pay at the fare reader, or reloading your transit card. Please refer to your PDA Disclosure and Agreements(opens in a new window) to view your account features and see if public transit transactions are excluded from excess debit transaction fees.

RBC cannot guarantee that a transit authority is classified with the above MCC and in some cases where the transit authority has a different MCC, a transit transaction may still count towards your monthly limit and incur an excess debit fee. A purchase will not qualify as a no-fee transit transaction and may incur an excess debit fee when made at:

• Transit authorities not classified with the above eligible MCC
• A merchant that is not classified with the above eligible MCC but sells transit fare or allows loading/reloading transit pass (e.g. convenience store selling tickets)
• A merchant that is not classified as an eligible MCC but is located on the premises of a merchant that is classified as an eligible MCC (e.g. fast food location at a transit station)

Note that while in most cases there are no excess debit transactions fees, as with any other debit transaction, other charges may still apply such as for use of overdraft.

The ability to tap to pay for transit directly via Interac Debit is available at any transit system in Canada that accepts Interac Debit contactless payments at the fare reader. For additional information on availability and to confirm if this is available for your local transit system, please visit Interac.ca(opens to another site) or refer to your local transit authority for more information.

Tap to pay for transit will only be available for transit systems that accept Interac Debit contactless at the fare reader. For additional information on availability and to confirm if this is available for your local transit system, please visit Interac.ca(opens to another site) or contact your local transit authority.

It is at the discretion of the transit authority (and/or the municipalities served or associated government agencies) to determine payment options available to transit system users. Please reach out to your transit authority for more information.

Commuting, and the ability to get to where you need to be, is an essential part of many of our clients’ daily lives. For those relying on transit, there may be no choice but to perform multiple transactions a day. Unlimited transit transactions provides our clients with the freedom and choice to use a debit card as their preferred payment method for transit (where accepted), so that they are able to easily move about their daily lives without having to worry about monthly transaction limits and fees.

While not all clients may be using transit, unlimited transactions are only available for transit purchases or if your bank account package includes unlimited transactions. To explore other RBC bank account packages that may better suit your Personal and or Business banking needs, refer to our Accounts pages:

Personal Accounts

Business Accounts

Or Account Selector tool:

Personal Accounts

Business Accounts

While Interac Debit is accepted for point-of-sale purchases at many retailers in the U.S., these purchases require inserting your card. Tap to pay with your debit card for transit is therefore not available in the U.S. or internationally at this time.

Your first point of contact is the transit authority. Transit authorities maintain detailed records about the trips that you have made in order to correctly calculate applicable fares. In addition, transit authorities are required to make information about rates charged and how fares are calculated readily available and this information can typically be found on their websites.

Tap to pay for transit at the fare reader relies on the same contactless technology as when you tap your debit card to purchase a coffee at a store. When you make a payment, the only information transmitted consists of payment information – not confidential details about you or your bank account. You simply tap your card or mobile wallet on a transit fare reader terminal to pay your fare and enter the transit system. There is no chance of exposing confidential information like your PIN.

Tap to pay for transit at the fare reader is also backed by Interac Zero liability to protect you from unauthorized transactions.

Note that when tapping to pay for transit at the fare reader, a $100 per transaction limit applies instead of the usual $250 limit. You will also not be asked to insert your card and enter your PIN if you’ve reached the $500 cumulative contactless spend limit. For contactless transit purchases not at the fare reader, such as for tickets at the ticket vending machine, reloading of a fare card at the ticket counter, etc., the standard contactless per transaction and cumulative spend limits would still apply.

Tap to pay for transit relies on contactless technology. When you make a payment, the only information transmitted consists of payment information – not confidential details about you or your bank account. You simply tap your card or mobile wallet on a transit fare reader terminal to pay your fare and enter the transit system. There is no chance of exposing confidential information like your PIN. To ensure the security of your payment card or mobile wallet, you should be the only one to hold your card in front of a terminal/fare reader.

To pay your fare, you simply tap your debit card or mobile wallet on the transit fare reader and enter the transit system. Depending on whether the transit authority uses fixed fares or variable fares (e.g. based on distance travelled or time), you may be required to tap one or more times during your trip when you enter the transit system, for transferring from one vehicle to another, and/or when exiting the transit system. Regardless of the fare structure, the transit authority will automatically calculate and process the final fare – normally within the same day or by the next day.

As long as there are sufficient funds available in your account, there are no additional transaction fees associated with using your RBC debit card (or mobile wallet) for transit. In most cases, if your account has a limited number of monthly transactions, transit transactions will not count towards your limit and will not incur excess debit fees. Please refer to your PDA Disclosure and Agreements(opens in a new window) to view your account features and see if public transit transactions are excluded from excess debit transaction fees.

For a transit transaction to not count towards your limit, the transit authority must be classified by Interac with the Merchant Category Code (MCC) of “Local and Suburban Commuter Passenger Transportation, including ferries”. RBC cannot guarantee that a transit authority is classified with this MCC and in some cases where the transit authority has a different MCC, a transit transaction may still count towards your monthly limit and incur an excess debit fee. A purchase will not qualify as a no-fee transit transaction and may incur an excess debit fee when made at:

• Transit authorities not classified with the above eligible MCC
• A merchant that is not classified with the above eligible MCC but sells transit fare or allows loading/reloading transit pass (e.g. convenience store selling tickets)
• A merchant that is not classified as an eligible MCC but is located on the premises of a merchant that is classified as an eligible MCC (e.g. fast food location at a transit station)

Note that as with any other debit transaction, certain charges may apply such as for use of overdraft.

When paying for transit with your debit card or mobile wallet, keep them handy with you for the duration of the trip. Transit authorities may conduct fare inspections by asking you to tap your debit card or mobile wallet on a card reader in order to verify paid fare status. Refer to your transit authority for fare policies and information.

If the original payment was declined due to insufficient funds on your account, if you have gone over your daily access limit for point of sale transactions, or if you have reached the maximum of 15 pending pre-authorization transactions, you may be asked to pay your fare using a different payment method, or an amount up to the maximum fare for the transit authority may be charged against your default account.

Fare policies are determined by the transit authority. Please contact your transit authority for fare information.

Similar to other point of sale merchants, you can pay your fare using either your physical debit card or your debit card that is added in your mobile wallet.

In most cases, if your account has a limited number of monthly transactions, tapping to pay for transit at the fare reader will not count towards your limit and will not incur excess debit fees. Please refer to your PDA Disclosure and Agreements(opens in a new window) to view your account features and see if public transit transactions are excluded from excess debit transaction fees.

The transaction must be made at a transit authority classified by Interac with the Merchant Category Code (MCC) of “Local and Suburban Commuter Passenger Transportation, including ferries”. RBC cannot guarantee that a transit authority is classified with this MCC, and in some cases where the transit authority has a different MCC, a transit transaction may still count towards your monthly limit and incur an excess debit fee. A purchase will not qualify as a transit transaction and may incur an debit fee when made at:

• Transit authorities not classified with the above eligible MCC
• A merchant that is not classified with the above eligible MCC but sells transit fare or allows loading/reloading transit pass (e.g. convenience store selling tickets)
• A merchant that is not classified as an eligible MCC but is located on the premises of a merchant that is classified as an eligible MCC (e.g. fast food location at a transit station)

Each transit authority has their own fare policies. Some may institute a tap on/tap off process, while at others it may not be necessary to tap off. Please contact your local transit authority for more information on whether "tap off" is required and what happens if you forget to “tap off”.

Transit authorities are required to make their fare schedule and details about how fares are processed readily available to customers, however they are not required to display the transaction amount on the point-of-entry payment terminal or fare reader. In many cases transit authorities use a variable fare model where the fare is calculated after the customer completes their travel, and often at the end of day. In those circumstances, posting an amount on the fare reader terminal may be confusing or misleading.

Transit transactions that are not included in your monthly transaction total will appear with a description of “Interac transit” along with the name or abbreviated form of the transit authority. When tapping to pay for transit on the fare reader there will also be an additional transaction reference number for any inquiries with the transit authority.

Due to the need for transit authorities to permit a large number of customers to enter the transit system quickly, most use a payment process called Service Before Authorization (SBA).

Under the SBA model, the fare terminal validates the payment card tapped and if successful, you are able to enter the transit system. RBC would then approve or decline the transaction based on your bank account status.

If RBC approves the transit authority's authorization request, the amount will be placed as a hold on your account, which decreases your available balance. Usually the hold should be released and the fare will be charged to your account on the same day once the transit authority sends the final fare amount to RBC. However, in exceptional cases, if RBC does not receive the final fare amount, it can take up to 4 business days for the holds to be released.

If RBC declines the transit authority's authorization request due to either insufficient funds, if you’ve gone past your daily access limit for point of sale, or if you have reached the maximum 15 pending pre-authorization transaction, the transaction will not be posted to your bank account, and your card or mobile wallet will be added to a 'blocklist' with the transit authority. Pending pre-authorizations are transactions that hold funds in your account where the final amount has not yet been posted (such as for gas and tap to pay at the fare reader for transit). When on a blocklist with the transit authority, you will not be permitted entry to the transit system until the fare owing has been paid, and your card is removed from the blocklist. Clients should contact their local transit authorities for more information.

Note for Business Clients:
If a business has an additional business client card (ABCC) issued, each ABCC will have 15 pre-authorizations that will not be shared with other ABCC or Primary Business client cardholders. However, since the same client card number and daily limits are shared amongst all cardholders (Primary client card and ABCC), clients may reach their maximum daily limits sooner. As such, they may be declined until either the transit authority processes the pre-authorization, and/or when the business client's withdrawal limit status has been reinstated for funds availability, and/or when the daily card limits are refreshed the next day.

Transactions involved with exceeding withdrawal limits or pre-authorizations may result in cardholders being placed on a “Transit Block List”. Cards with the same issue numbers will also be placed on the block list. When transactions are processed all related cards will be removed from the list by the transit authority. As a result some inquiries for why my card did not work will need to be redirected to the Transit Authority.

No. Transactions that are part of one continuous trip will not be individually posted to your account. While each transit authority may have slightly different fare rules, it is important to understand the difference between the two general transit fare models:

Fixed Fare Payment Model - Under this model, the transit authority charges a single fixed amount fare when you tap your card, phone, or device to enter the transit system. The fixed amount may vary based on whether the transit authority supports different concession fares and if your card, phone, or device is registered for that type of fare (e.g. child, student, senior). The fixed fare may be valid to travel anywhere within the transit system and may have a time limit (e.g. 90 minutes). Transfers may be handled via paper transfer slips or another means other than tapping your card, phone, or device again when you transfer.

Variable Fare Payment Model - Under this model, you would tap your card, phone, or device to enter the transit system. The transit authority sends a pre-authorization request to RBC for an estimated amount to cover a single trip or for one day's travel to be guaranteed. If your account has sufficient funds and RBC approves the Pre-Authorization, you would continue your travel by tapping your card or mobile wallet as necessary for transfers and / or when exiting the transit system. The final daily fare is calculated by the transit authority at the end of the business day and the associated final fare is then posted to your bank account.

For fares that are charged based on distance/variable fare model, you may tap your card or mobile wallet every time you enter the transit system or transfer from one vehicle to another and even sometimes when you exit a transit system. The transit authority will automatically calculate the fare and process it through your account. Transactions processed by the transit authority during the day are debited to cardholders’ accounts on the same business day. Transactions processed by the transit authority after current business day or during weekends and holidays will be debited to cardholders’ accounts usually on the following business day.

This depends on the banking package that you are enrolled in. Most chequing accounts that have a set number of Interac debit transactions per month will not incur per-transaction charges for public transit transactions. Please refer to your account features(PDF) for the number of debit transactions available per month or if public transit transactions are excluded from excess debit transaction fees.

Please check with your transit authority to find out if concession fares such as youth, student, senior, etc. will be supported for tap and pay using a debit card and the steps to do so.

There are varying factors that may result in a fare being posted up to 8 calendar days after your trip took place (or in some rare situations, a longer time period):

• Periodic communications outages on transit vehicles transit authorities have up to 24 hours for fixed fare transactions, or up to 48 hours for variable fare transactions (e.g. fare by distance), to provide and submit the net fare to RBC so that these transactions can be posted to your account. In most instances, however, approved transactions are posted to your account on the same date as the date of travel.
• If RBC declines the transit authority’s request to authorize payment for travel already permitted due to either your bank account being in a status of non-sufficient funds (NSF), if you have reached your daily access limit for point of sale transactions, or if you have reached the maximum 15 pending pre-authorization transaction, the transit authority will have a fare owing. Pending pre-authorizations are transactions that hold funds in your account where the final amount has not yet been posted (such as for gas and tap to pay at the fare reader for transit). The transit authority is permitted to resubmit the request for funds to RBC for up to once per day, and to a maximum of 3 attempts over 7 calendar days after the initial transaction date. If your account is then in good standing and RBC approves one of these transactions, the fare may be posted to your account up to 8 calendar days after the date of your travel.
• Tap-to-Pay-Debt - If you have fare owing to a transit authority because RBC declined an authorization request for payment subsequent to your having been given access to the transit system, the transit authority may at any time that you attempt to re-enter the transit system execute a process called Tap-to-Pay-Debt to recover the funds.
• Under Tap-to-Pay-Debt, if you tap your debit card or mobile wallet on a transit system point-of-entry terminal or fare reader at a time when you already owe money to the transit authority, the transit authority may submit an authorization request to RBC for the amount of fare owing. Due to time limitations and the need for high throughput at point-of-entry terminals, the transit authority may deny you entry while these tap-to-pay-debt payment transactions proceed in the background. If approved, your card should be freed up to travel as soon as the transit authority is able to update the point-of-entry terminals and fare readers on the status of your debit card or mobile wallet. As an alternative variation on Tap-to-Pay-Debt, when you have fare owing to the transit authority and you use your debit card or mobile wallet at a point-of-entry (POE) terminal or fare reader, you may be directed to a separate stand-alone terminal to pay any fare owing before using your debit card or mobile wallet for further travel.

The maximum number of times you are able to tap to pay for a transit trip is based on the purchase limit policies for your bank account, such as transaction or daily access limits. In most cases tap to pay will not count towards the transaction limits for an account. Please refer to your PDA Disclosure and Agreements(opens in a new window) to view your account features and see if public transit transactions are excluded from excess debit transaction fees. You will also be limited to tap to pay for transit due to a maximum of 15 pending pre-authorizations. Pending pre-authorizations are transactions that hold funds in your account where the final amount has not yet been posted (such as for gas and tap to pay at the fare reader for transit).

Where the transit authority is processing variable fare payments (e.g. fare by distance or time), they may process a single payment for a trip, or a single payment for the day where a daily cap on fares is in place. This may be regardless of whether or not you tap your card many times to make transfers. In that case, they use the additional taps to record where you travelled, so that they can calculate the net fare owing at the end of the trip or day.

Please check with the transit authority to understand how many transactions may be processed against your bank account for a day's travel, so that you can compare that against any transaction count limits that may apply to your bank account. Please refer to your account features for the number of debit transactions available to you per month and/or for excess debit transaction fees.

Note for Business Clients:
If a business has an additional business client card (ABCC) issued, each ABCC will have 15 pre-authorizations that will not be shared with other ABCC or Primary Business client cardholders. However since the same client card number and daily limits are shared amongst all cardholders (Primary client card and ABCC), clients may reach their maximum daily limits sooner. As such, they may be declined until either the transit authority processes the pre-authorization, and/or when the business client's withdrawal limit status has been reinstated for funds availability, and/or when the daily card limits are refreshed the next day.

Transactions involved with exceeding withdrawal limits or pre-authorizations may result in cardholders being placed on a “Transit Block List”. Cards with the same issue numbers will also be placed on the block list. When transactions are processed all related cards will be removed from the list by the transit authority. As a result some inquiries for why my card did not work will need to be redirected to the Transit Authority.

Most transit authorities require that the same credential (card or mobile wallet) be used for the entire trip. If you tap to enter the transit system with your physical debit card and then tap your mobile wallet, this will likely be recorded as two separate trips and you will be charged twice. Remember to tap off with the same card, phone or wallet at the end of a trip.

There are no incremental fees for tapping to pay for transit. As with any debit transaction, other charges may apply such as for use of overdraft. In most cases, debit fees will not apply on excess debit transactions. Please refer to your account features (PDF) for applicable fees.

Most transit authorities do not permit more than one transaction to be processed against the same payment credential (e.g. debit card or debit card added on a mobile wallet) within a certain time period, so in most cases the second tap should be rejected.

Due to the need for transit authorities to permit a large number of customers to enter the transit system quickly, most use a payment process called Service Before Authorization (SBA). Under the SBA model, the fare terminal performs basic checks to validate the payment card tapped and if it is okay, you are able to enter the transit system. At that point, RBC receives the transit payment request and approves or declines the transaction based on the your bank account status. If the transaction is declined (e.g. NSF), the transaction will not be posted to your bank account, you will owe the transit authority the fare amount, and your payment card or mobile wallet will be added to a 'blocklist'. When on a blocklist with the transit authority, you will not be permitted entry to the transit system until the debt has been paid.

If a refund is required by the transit authority, primary client cardholders will receive a client not present (CNP) refund to the primary account associated with their card. As Additional Business Client Cards (ABCC) share the same client card number with the primary client cardholder, CNP refunds may not be processed to the ABCC primary account where the funds were originally debited from; instead, CNP refunds will be posted to the primary account associated with the primary client card.