ATM fees in the US and Canada

Two charges, two countries

A withdrawal and a fee are different lines. Sometimes there are two fee lines for one withdrawal: one from your bank, and one from the owner of the machine. Write the date, each printed name, and each amount. A US statement stays in USD. A Canadian statement stays in C$.

This fee is not a monthly account fee, not a subscription, and not a credit card annual fee. A cash advance on a credit card at a cash machine can add interest and a cash advance fee. That is a card charge. How to ask about a card annual fee is a different page. Foreign transaction fees covers a conversion charge on a card, which can also appear when you use a machine outside the country.

United States

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau says yes, both your bank or credit union and the owner of the ATM can charge a fee. Your bank must disclose its fee in writing when you open the account or when it adds a new fee. The ATM operator must disclose its fee in writing at the machine. That answer is on the CFPB ATM fee page. The CFPB page does not publish a national dollar amount. Do not copy a fee from someone else's receipt.

Regulation E, 12 CFR 1005.16, says an ATM operator that charges a fee for a transfer or a balance inquiry must disclose the amount of the fee on the screen or on paper before you are committed to paying it. The operator may charge the fee only if you got that notice and then chose to continue. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency also says federal law allows banks to charge fees, including ATM fees, and that the bank has to disclose account fees before you open the account. See its ATM fee answer.

How fees show on a US statement is where this line sits next to monthly fees and overdraft fees.

Canada

FCAC describes three ATM charges on its ATM fees page. A regular account fee is what your institution charges to withdraw at a machine, and a package often covers it. A network access fee is what your institution adds when the machine is not one it owns. A convenience fee is what another institution or a private operator charges, and your institution adds that on top of the other two.

The table on that page was last modified in August 2022. FCAC says the ranges were collected from Canadian institutions, including RBC, TD, Scotiabank, BMO, CIBC, National Bank, Desjardins, and others. At your own institution, the table lists a regular account fee of $0 to $2.00 and a total of $0 to $2.00. At another institution, it lists a regular fee of $0 to $2.00, a network fee of $0 to $2.00, a convenience fee of $1.00 to $5.00, and a total of $1.00 to $9.00. At a private operator, it lists a convenience fee of $1.50 to $5.00 and a total of $1.50 to $9.00. Those are ranges, not the fee on your withdrawal. The statement has the amount you paid. FCAC says more fees can apply outside Canada.

When you open an account at a federally regulated institution, FCAC says it must give you the charges that apply, including ATM fees. FCAC also says members of THE EXCHANGE network do not charge customers of other member institutions a convenience fee, though a member may still charge its own customer a network access fee. Check with your institution. NSF fees in Canada are a different charge, for a payment that did not have enough money.

What to ask

Use the phone number on the statement. Have the date, the machine fee, and any fee from your own bank. Ask which of the two charges is which. Ask whether the machine was in network. Then ask the bank to review the fee or remove it. They can say no. The owner of a private machine is a different company from your bank. Your bank may not be able to remove the other company's fee. This page has no success rate.

Do not multiply a single ATM fee by 12 and treat the result as a monthly bill unless that same fee is charged every month. One withdrawal is one event. If you want a 12 month figure, add the ATM fee lines that are actually on the statements.

Upload a statement in Expenvo to see the bank fee lines it recognizes. The PDF stays on your device. Expenvo does not call the bank, and it does not promise the fee will be removed.

Questions

Can I be charged twice for one ATM withdrawal?

Yes. The CFPB says both your bank and the ATM owner can charge a fee in the United States. FCAC describes a fee from your institution and a convenience fee from the machine owner in Canada. The statement shows which amounts were actually charged.

Does a US rule set a maximum ATM fee?

The CFPB page cited here does not publish a maximum dollar amount. It says the bank must disclose its fee, and the ATM operator must disclose its fee at the machine before you are committed to paying it.

Are the Canadian ranges my fee?

No. The FCAC table lists ranges collected from institutions, and the page was last modified in August 2022. Your statement has the amount you paid. A package can already include some machine withdrawals.

Will the bank remove an ATM fee if I ask?

They might, and they might not. Asking is a request. A fee added by the owner of the machine may be a charge from that company, not a fee your bank can remove.

Sources

• CFPB: can my bank charge an ATM fee?
• Regulation E, 12 CFR 1005.16, ATM disclosures
• OCC: are ATM fees legal?
• FCAC: ATM fees

Related guides

• US bank fees on a statement
• Canadian bank fees on a statement
• NSF fees on a Canadian bank account
• Foreign transaction fees