PSA Upcharge Guide: What It Is, When It Happens & Costs

PSA Upcharges — A Simple Guide

If PSA believes your card’spost-grading fair value exceeds the value cap of the service you chose, they move that card to the correct tier. You then pay the difference between tiers (plus a small admin fee). That difference is the upcharge.

WHAT CAUSES PSA UPCHARGES?

  • The card grades higher than expected (e.g., GEM-MINT 10).
  • Recent comps show the market value above your tier’s cap.
  • Low-pop / chase variant sales spike the valuation.

Only cards that exceed their tier’s cap are adjusted. Other cards in the same order remain on the original tier.

OUR TIERS & TYPICAL PSA VALUE CAPS

Fees in A$. PSA caps are in US$.

Service Our Fee (A$) PSA Value Cap (US$)
TCG Bulk C 36.95 199
TCG Bulk XV 38.95 199
Value Bulk 39.95 499
Value 44.95 499
Value Max 119.95 999
Regular 139.95 1,499
Express 299.95 2,499
Super Express 599.95 4,999
Walk-Through 1,099.95 10,000
Premium-1 1,999.95 24,999
Premium-2 3,999.95 49,999
Premium-3 5,999.95 99,999

How we notify you

  • Transparency first: If an upcharge applies, we send you an email with the calculation for each affected card (original fee → new fee → difference), plus our admin fee.
  • You can pay securely from that email to finalise your order.

Quick example — TCG Bulk C (A$36.95, US$199 cap) → Value (A$44.95, US$499 cap)

Your card grades a 10 and PSA values it around US$350. It exceeds US$199, so PSA moves it to the Value tier.

Initial Grading Service Fee
A$36.95
New Grading Service Fee
A$44.95
Upcharge difference = 44.95 − 36.95 = A$8.00
+ SLABD admin fee A$5.00
Total payable now: A$13.00

Real-world scenarios

Scenario 1 — Value → Value Max

Declared US$400 on Value (A$44.95, cap US$499). Graded 10; PSA values ~US$650. Tier changes to Value Max (A$119.95, cap US$999).

119.95 − 44.95 = A$75.00 + A$5 admin = A$80.00
Scenario 2 — TCG Bulk XV → Value

Submitted on TCG Bulk XV (A$38.95, cap US$199). PSA values at ~US$350. Tier changes to Value (A$44.95).

44.95 − 38.95 = A$6.00 + A$5 admin = A$11.00
Scenario 3 — Regular → Express

Regular (A$139.95, cap US$1,499) selected. PSA values at ~US$2,100. Tier changes to Express (A$299.95, cap US$2,499).

299.95 − 139.95 = A$160.00 + A$5 admin = A$165.00

What our upcharge email looks like

Subject: Your Value order #005907 has been upcharged
Order #005907

Hi Michael,

Some cards in your submission exceeded the declared value for your selected Value servicecap US$499. When this happens, PSA automatically adjusts the service tier and fee for those cards.

The maximum value for this service is US$499 and has been exceeded.

Cert No Description Orig Fee New Fee Diff Admin Grade
117639832 2016 Panini Aficionado Dual Authentics #14 Shaquille O’Neal / Kobe Bryant PRIME A$39.95 A$119.95 A$80.00 A$5.00 10
117639836 1999 Pokemon Game Charizard-Holo A$39.95 A$119.95 A$80.00 A$5.00 8

Pay Now

If you have other cards in this order, those grades will be released upon completion.

The email shows the original fee → new fee → difference for each affected card, plus our admin fee. Paying the email link clears the upcharge and releases grades.

Tips to minimise surprises

  • Check recent sales (“comps”) near submission time.
  • For chase / low-pop cards, pick a tier with headroom if you expect a strong grade.
  • Ask us—our team can advise a realistic declared value for your card.

Upcharges come from PSA’s re-valuation at grading time. We don’t control the caps, but we’ll always apply them consistently and communicate clearly via email.

This guide reflects SLABD’s pricing examples and the way PSA value caps work at the time of writing. PSA may update tiers, turnaround times, and value limits; the principle stays the same—only the price difference between tiers (plus admin fee) is payable.

Learn more about PSA Grading services here