What are convenience fees and surcharges?

Overview

In Jumbula, convenience fees and surcharges both add costs to the base program price, but they serve different purposes and apply under different conditions. Understanding the difference helps with accurate billing and clear communication with families.

Who is involved

Administrators: Admins can enable, disable, and configure fees.
Registrants/Families: Families see these fees as separate line items during checkout and on receipts.

Convenience fee

Applies to: Online payment methods only (credit/debit card, PayPal, ACH/eCheck)
Purpose: Covers payment processing costs
Offline payments: Not applied
How it works: Applicable fee is automatically added when an eligible payment method is selected

Calculation example:

Program Price: $100

Convenience Fee: $3

Total if paying online: $103
Total if paying by cash/check: $100

Surcharges

Applies to: All registrations, regardless of payment method
Purpose: Covers general operating expenses
Offline payments: Applied
How it works: Added to the cart at the start of checkout

Calculation example:

Program Price: $100

Surcharge: $5

Total for all payment methods: $105

Managing fees

To configure fees, go to: Classic Admin Dashboard > Settings > Checkout > Additional Charges

Select the configuration settings based on your needs and click Save.

You may enable one or both fees.

How Fees Are Applied

Convenience Fee Flow
Registrant selects program > Enters checkout > Chooses online payment method > Fee is added

Surcharge Flow

Registrant selects program > Enters checkout > Surcharge is added automatically > Any payment method is used

The following table outlines how each fee behaves within the system and its impact on the final transaction total:

Feature	Convenience Fee	Surcharge
Application Trigger	Triggered only by online payment methods (Credit Card, PayPal, or ACH).	Triggered by the creation of an order, regardless of payment method.
Business Purpose	Recovers merchant processing fees incurred from online transactions.	Offsets general operating expenses, including facilities, supplies, and staff costs.
Family Visibility	Displayed as a separate line item at checkout (online only).	Displayed as a separate line item at checkout (all orders).
Offline Payments	No. Not applied to cash or paper check payments.	Yes. Applied to all orders, including those paid offline.
Financial Example	$100 Base + $3 Fee = $103 Total (Applies only if paying online).	$100 Base + $5 Surcharge = $105 Total (Applies to every registrant).