News
Marsiling minimart gets complaints for S$0.50 'service fee' on cigarettes, owner says their cigarettes already cheaper than most
It was to help cover the one per cent transaction fee incurred for all e-payments, the boss said.
March 16, 2026, 03:39 PM
Several people have taken to social media to complain about a minimart in Marsiling charging an additional fee for purchases made via digital payments.
On Mar. 12, a Facebook user claimed that MyHome Mart charged a S$0.40 PayNow fee for each item, which she felt did not make sense.
This practice was in place as far back as October 2025, when another user also posted about it and similarly found it unreasonable.
Shin Min Daily News, however, clarified that the fee was S$0.50 and only applied to cigarette purchases.
A notice at the counter clearly stated this and cited service provider charges.
All electronic payment methods, including Visa, MasterCard, and NETS, would incur this additional charge, according to the notice.
It also encouraged customers to pay cash when buying cigarettes.
To cover transaction fees
An employee at the minimart, located at Blk 132 Marsiling Rise, confirmed with Shin Min that they only impose the fee on purchases of cigarettes, and no other items.
The boss, Chen (transliterated), claimed that merchants are charged a one per cent transaction fee for all electronic payment services.
Chen claimed he was already selling cigarettes at S$0.70 to S$0.80 cheaper than other shops.
"If I do not charge this S$0.50, I might even make a loss on the more expensive cigarettes after deducting the bank transaction fees!"
There would be the occasional customers who find it unreasonable, but most are all right with it, Chen added.
He said he has had some customers who buy 10 packs of cigarettes at one time, and were willing to pay the extra S$5.
According to Stomp, the QR code used for digital payments was under NETS.
The Association of Banks (ABS) in Singapore said they have always maintained that PayNow provides a secure and easy-to-use e-payment method.
"PayNow is intended to be provided free to consumers choosing the speed and convenience offered by PayNow when making payments."
They further said that if a payment is to be made via the PayNow platform, banks would have told merchants that they are not to charge consumers a processing fee."
While ABS said they were unable to comment on this specific case, as it is unclear if this particular payment is via PayNow. They noted that the same QR code is used by multiple e-payment platforms.
Is it reasonable?
A delivery rider who lives nearby told Shin Min the fee was acceptable because the minimart sold many items cheaper than elsewhere, so he could make up the difference by buying such items along with cigarettes.
But to another resident, who also worked as a delivery rider, the extra charge was high enough to make him decide to no longer buy cigarettes from this minimart.
"Since it's S$0.50 more for a pack of cigarettes, and I would buy three packs at a time, that makes it more than a dollar," he said. "That really is quite expensive."
PayNow surcharges prohibited
Major retail banks currently waive PayNow transaction fees received by merchants from customers, said Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade and Industry Gan Kim Yong on Oct. 14, 2025.
A minimal fee is charged if the merchant uses additional services like notifications for funds received.
Gan added that the Association of Banks in Singapore (ABS), which owns the PayNow scheme, has rules that prohibit merchants from imposing a surcharge on customers who wish to pay via PayNow.
He was responding to a question about Singapore Pools charging a S$0.10 fee for each PayNow transaction at the time.
Following a joint review by ABS, Singapore Pools, and its partners, the operator announced it will absorb all e-payment transaction fees.
Top images from Don S Rive/Facebook and Shin Min
