1. In addition to the finance charge permitted by parts 2 and 4, a creditor may contract for and receive the following additional charges:

 a. Official fees and taxes.
 b. Charges for insurance as described in subsection 2.
 c. Amounts actually paid or to be paid by the creditor for registration, certificate of title, or license fees.
 d. Annual charges, payable in advance, for the privilege of using a credit card which entitles the cardholder to purchase or lease goods or services from at least one hundred persons not related to the card issuer, under an arrangement pursuant to which the debts resulting from the purchases or leases are payable to the card issuer.
 e. With respect to a debt secured by an interest in land, the following “closing costs”, provided they are bona fide, reasonable in amount, and not for the purpose of circumvention or evasion of this chapter:

 (1) Fees or premiums for title examination, abstract of title, title insurance, or similar purposes including surveys.
 (2) Fees for preparation of a deed, settlement statement, or other documents, if not paid to the creditor or a person related to the creditor.
 (3) Escrows for future payments of taxes, including assessments for improvements, insurance, and water, sewer, and land rents.
 (4) Fees for notarizing deeds and other documents, if not paid to the creditor or a person related to the creditor.
 (5) Fees or charges listed in section 535.8, subsection 4, paragraphs “a” and “b”.
 f. (1) With respect to open-end credit pursuant to a credit card issued by the creditor which entitles the cardholder to purchase or lease goods or services from at least one hundred persons not related to the card issuer, the parties may contract for an over-limit charge in accordance with 12 C.F.R. §1026.52(b) if the balance of the account exceeds the credit limit established pursuant to the agreement. The over-limit charge under this paragraph shall not be assessed again in a subsequent billing cycle unless in a subsequent billing cycle the account balance has been reduced below the credit limit.

 (2) If the differential treatment of this subsection based on the number of persons honoring a credit card is found to be unconstitutional, the parties may contract for the over-limit charge as described in this paragraph in any consumer credit transaction pursuant to open-end credit, and the other conditions relating to the over-limit charge shall remain in effect.
 g. A surcharge as provided for in section 554.3512 for a dishonored check, draft, or order that was accepted as payment for a consumer credit transaction payment. The surcharge shall not be assessed against the maker if the reason for the dishonor of the instrument is that the maker has stopped payment pursuant to section 554.4403.
 h. Charges for other benefits, including insurance, conferred on the consumer, if the benefits are of value to the consumer and if the charges are reasonable in relation to the benefits, are of a type which is not for credit, and are authorized as permissible additional charges by rule adopted by the administrator.
 i. A reasonable annual account maintenance fee, payable in advance, for the privilege of maintaining a demand deposit account with a line of credit that may be accessed by the account holder writing a check.
 j. For a consumer loan where the amount financed does not exceed three thousand dollars and the term of the loan does not exceed twelve months, a bank, credit union incorporated pursuant to state or federal law, or a federally chartered or out-of-state chartered savings bank or savings and loan association may charge an additional application fee not to exceed the lesser of ten percent of the amount financed or thirty dollars. The fee permitted pursuant to this paragraph may be charged solely to applicants who are approved or to all applicants. The fee permitted pursuant to this paragraph shall not be charged in connection with a loan used for the purchase of a motor vehicle, or for a loan where the borrower’s dwelling is used as security.
 k. Credit reporting charges.
 l. For a consumer credit transaction, a service charge in an amount not to exceed the lesser of ten percent of the amount financed or thirty dollars.

Terms Used In Iowa Code 537.2501

  • Account: means the same as defined in section 554. See Iowa Code 554E.1
  • Actuary: means a person who is a member in good standing of the American academy of actuaries. See Iowa Code 510.1B
  • Administrator: means the administrator designated in section 537. See Iowa Code 537.1301
  • Agreement: means the oral or written bargain of the parties in fact as found in their language or by implication from other circumstances including course of dealing or usage of trade or course of performance. See Iowa Code 537.1301
  • Amount financed: means :
  • Billing cycle: means the time interval between periodic billing statement dates. See Iowa Code 537.1301
  • Card issuer: means a person who issues a credit card. See Iowa Code 537.1301
  • Cardholder: means a person to whom a credit card is issued or who has agreed with the card issuer to pay obligations arising from the issuance or use of the card to or by another person. See Iowa Code 537.1301
  • Commissioner: means the commissioner of insurance. See Iowa Code 510.1B
  • Consumer: means the buyer, lessee, or debtor to whom credit is granted in a consumer credit transaction. See Iowa Code 537.1301
  • Consumer credit transaction: means a consumer credit sale or consumer loan, or a refinancing or consolidation thereof, or a consumer lease, or a consumer rental purchase agreement. See Iowa Code 537.1301
  • consumer loan: is a loan in which all of the following are applicable:
     (1) The person is regularly engaged in the business of making loans. See Iowa Code 537.1301
  • Contract: means the same as defined in section 554D. See Iowa Code 554E.1
  • Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
  • Credit: means the right granted by a person extending credit to a person to defer payment of debt, to incur debt and defer its payment, or to purchase property or services and defer payment therefor. See Iowa Code 537.1301
  • Credit card: means a card or device issued under an arrangement pursuant to which a card issuer gives a cardholder the privilege of purchasing or leasing property or purchasing services, obtaining loans, or otherwise obtaining credit from the card issuer or other persons. See Iowa Code 537.1301
  • Creditor: means the person who grants credit in a consumer credit transaction or, except as otherwise provided, an assignee of a creditor's right to payment, but use of the term does not in itself impose on an assignee any obligation of the assignee's assignor. See Iowa Code 537.1301
  • Debt: means an actual or alleged obligation arising out of a consumer credit transaction, consumer rental purchase agreement, or a transaction which would have been a consumer credit transaction either if a finance charge was made, if the obligation was not payable in installments, if a lease was for a term of four months or less, or if a lease was of an interest in land. See Iowa Code 537.7102
  • Deposit account: means the same as defined in section 554. See Iowa Code 554E.1
  • following: when used by way of reference to a chapter or other part of a statute mean the next preceding or next following chapter or other part. See Iowa Code 4.1
  • Goods: includes , but is not limited to:
     (1) "Goods" as described in section 554. See Iowa Code 537.1301
  • Lease: A contract transferring the use of property or occupancy of land, space, structures, or equipment in consideration of a payment (e.g., rent). Source: OCC
  • License: includes the authorization, of whatever form, to engage in the conduct regulated under those chapters. See Iowa Code 537.2301
  • Loan: means any of the following, except as provided in paragraph "b":
     (1) The creation of debt by the lender's payment of or agreement to pay money to the debtor or to a third person for the account of the debtor. See Iowa Code 537.1301
  • Open-end credit: A credit agreement (typically a credit card) that allows a customer to borrow against a preapproved credit line when purchasing goods and services. The borrower is only billed for the amount that is actually borrowed plus any interest due. (Also called a charge account or revolving credit.) Source: OCC
  • Open-end credit: means an arrangement, other than a consumer rental purchase agreement, pursuant to which all of the following are applicable:
  • Person: means :
  • property: includes personal and real property. See Iowa Code 4.1
  • Rule: includes "regulation". See Iowa Code 4.1
  • Sale: means any sale, offer for sale, or attempt to sell or lease any land, to the public in this state, for cash or on credit. See Iowa Code 543C.1
  • Services: includes , but is not limited to:
  • Settlement: Parties to a lawsuit resolve their difference without having a trial. Settlements often involve the payment of compensation by one party in satisfaction of the other party's claims.
  • state: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the territories, and the words "United States" may include the said district and territories. See Iowa Code 4.1
  • Transaction: means a sale, trade, exchange, transfer, payment, or conversion of a digital asset or any other property or any other action or set of actions occurring between two or more persons relating to the conduct of business, commercial, or governmental affairs. See Iowa Code 554E.1
 2. An additional charge may be made for insurance written in connection with the transaction, as follows:

 a. With respect to insurance against loss of or damage to property, or against liability arising out of the ownership or use of property, if the creditor furnishes a clear, conspicuous, and specific statement in writing to the consumer setting forth the cost of the insurance if obtained from or through the creditor and stating that the consumer may choose the person through whom the insurance is to be obtained.
 b. With respect to consumer credit insurance providing life, accident, health, or unemployment coverage, if the insurance coverage is not required by the creditor, and this fact is clearly and conspicuously disclosed in writing to the consumer, and if, in order to obtain the insurance in connection with the extension of credit, the consumer gives specific dated and separately signed affirmative written indication of the consumer’s desire to do so after written disclosure to the consumer of the cost. However, credit unemployment insurance shall be permitted under this paragraph if all of the following conditions have been met:

 (1) The insurance provides coverage beginning with the first day of unemployment. However, the policy may include a waiting period before the consumer may file a claim.
 (2) The insurance shall be sold separately and shall be separately priced from any other insurance offered or sold at the same time. The credit unemployment insurance need not be sold separately or separately priced from other insurance offered if it is included as part of an insurance offering by a credit card issuer to its credit cardholders.
 (3) The premium rates have been affirmatively approved by the insurance division of the department of commerce. In approving or establishing the rates, the division shall review the insurance company’s actuarial data to assure that the rates are fair and reasonable. The insurance commissioner shall either hire or contract with a qualified actuary to review the data. The insurance division shall obtain reimbursement from the insurance company for the cost of the actuarial review prior to approving the rates. In addition, the rates shall be made in accordance with the following provisions:

 (a) Rates shall not be excessive, inadequate, or unfairly discriminatory.
 (b) Due consideration shall be given to all relevant factors within and outside this state but rates shall be deemed to be reasonable under this section if they reasonably may be expected to produce a ratio of fifty percent by dividing claims incurred by premiums earned.
 3. With respect to open-end credit obtained pursuant to a credit card issued by the creditor which entitles the cardholder to purchase or lease goods or services from at least one hundred persons not related to the card issuer, the creditor may contract for and receive any charge lawfully contained in a prior agreement between the consumer and a prior creditor from whom the creditor currently issuing the credit card acquired the credit card account, if the account was acquired in an arm’s-length for-value sale from a nonrelated or nonaffiliated creditor. The creditor may charge any charge on new open-end credit accounts lawfully permitted in a prior agreement between a consumer and a prior creditor from whom the creditor currently issuing the credit card acquired the credit card accounts.