The Federal Reserve Board on Thursday, November 12, 2026, announced pricing for the payment services that the Federal Reserve Banks provide to banks and credit unions, effective January 1, 2027. The services covered include the clearing of checks, automated clearing house (ACH) transactions, instant payments (provided through the FedNow Service), and wholesale payment and settlement services.

Because these services underpin the day-to-day movement of money between banks, the fee schedule shapes part of the operating costs that banks and credit unions face for clearing and settling payments.

By law — a requirement dating to the Monetary Control Act of 1980 — the Federal Reserve must establish fees that recover the costs of providing payment services — including imputed costs — over the long run. For 2027, the Federal Reserve expects to recover 101.5 percent of actual and imputed expenses, incorporating the return on equity that would have been earned if a private-sector firm had provided the services, a component of the private-sector adjustment factor. Taken together, the 2027 price changes are estimated to produce an average price increase of 1.4 percent for established, mature services.

Changes to Check Services

Alongside the pricing announcement, the Federal Reserve Banks announced changes to streamline and adjust their check services. As described in a request for information on check services issued last year, the volume of checks processed by the Federal Reserve Banks is declining, but checks remain an important payment instrument for many consumers and businesses. That decline comes amid a broader shift of U.S. payments toward electronic methods.

According to the announcement, the changes were informed by public feedback and are intended to ensure that the Federal Reserve Banks continue to provide check services efficiently. The adjustments include optimizing check processing windows during low-volume periods, increasing the fees that banks and credit unions pay to process checks, and other operational updates.

The Federal Reserve emphasized that the changes do not impact consumers' and businesses' ability to pay with or receive checks; they affect only how banks and credit unions process checks with the Federal Reserve Banks.

Fee Schedule and Supporting Documents

The entire 2027 fee schedule for all of the Federal Reserve's payment services is published on FRBservices.org. Additional information on the Federal Reserve's payment services, including service usage statistics, is available on the Board's website.

The announcement was accompanied by a board memo (PDF) and a Federal Register notice (PDF). Media inquiries may be directed by email or by phone at 202-452-2955. The full press release is available on the Federal Reserve's website.

The new prices take effect on January 1, 2027, and the fee schedule and supporting documents are available for banks and credit unions to review ahead of that date.