手续费

• Pinyin: shǒu xù fèi
• Hanzi breakdown: 手续 = procedures; 费 = fee — handling fee, processing charge

Meaning

Handling fee; service charge; processing fee. A fee charged for administrative or transactional services.

Common in banking, commerce, and official processes. May include: 银行手续费 (bank fees), 转账手续费 (transfer fees), 签证手续费 (visa processing fees). Distinguished from 服务费 (service fee) which is more general. Often a percentage or flat rate.

Examples

1. 网上银行转账免收手续费。 Online banking transfers are free of handling fees.
2. 信用卡取现会产生较高的手续费。 Credit card cash withdrawals incur high handling fees.
3. 办理这项业务需要缴纳五十元的手续费。 Processing this service requires paying a fifty-yuan handling fee.

Usage Guide

Context: banking, commerce, administrative

Tone: transactional

Do Say

• 这笔交易的手续费是多少？(What's the handling fee for this transaction?)
• 手续费从账户余额中扣除。(The handling fee will be deducted from the account balance.)

Don't Say

• 餐厅服务费不叫'手续费'而叫'服务费' (Restaurant service charges aren't called 手续费 — use 服务费 instead)

Origin & History

Compound of 手续 (procedures, formalities) + 费 (fee, expense). Literally 'fee for procedures.'

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal