Deluxe Corporation Severance Plan for Certain Executive Level Employees, effective July 30, 2019

Continued failure by an Eligible Employee to perform his/her duties with the Company (other than any such failure resulting from incapacity due to physical or mental illness or any such actual or anticipated failure after Eligible Employee’s delivery of a written notice to Deluxe’s Chief Executive Officer or General Counsel that Eligible Employee is terminating his/her employment for Good Reason), after a written demand for performance is delivered to Eligible Employee, and the Eligible Employee fails to remedy the event constituting Cause within fifteen (15) calendar days after receipt of the demand;

An Eligible Employee’s conviction of a felony;

An Eligible Employee’s willful engagement in:

other illegal conduct relating to the business or assets of the Company; or

gross misconduct.

Sale of all or substantially all of the assets of the Company (including, to the extent they constitute the most substantial assets, a sale of substantially all of the Company’s customer relationships);

Consolidation, liquidation, or merger of the Company in which the Company is not the continuing or surviving corporation or pursuant to which shares of the Company’s outstanding capital stock are converted into cash, securities, or other property, other than a consolidation or merger of the Company in which shareholders of the Company immediately prior to the consolidation or merger hold more than 50% of voting capital stock of the surviving corporation immediately after the consolidation or merger; or

The Continuing Directors (as defined below) cease to constitute a majority of the Company’s Board of Directors as a result of the election or appointment of sufficient New Directors (as defined below) within a 12‑month period to constitute a majority of the Company’s Board of Directors (for purposes of this clause, “Continuing Director” shall mean a member of the Board of Directors who (i) was a member of the Board of Directors on the effective date of this Plan (an “Existing Director”) or (ii) subsequently becomes a member of the Board of Directors, if the initial nomination for election or initial election of such person (the “Approved Director”) to the Board of Directors is recommended or approved by a majority of the members of the Board of Directors at such time as it consists of a majority of Existing Directors and Approved Directors, and “New Director” shall mean any person who is not a Continuing Director).

An involuntary employment termination by the Company for any reason other than (a) death, (b) Cause, or (c) Disability; or

A voluntary termination by the Eligible Employee for Good Reason, as defined below.

The assignment of an Eligible Employee to any position and/or duties which represent or otherwise entail a material diminution in his/her position (including status, offices, titles and reporting requirements), authority, duties or responsibilities or any other action by the Company which results in a material diminution of an Eligible Employee’s position (or positions) with the Company, excluding for this purpose an isolated, insubstantial or inadvertent action not taken in bad faith and which is remedied by the Company promptly after receipt of written notice thereof given by the Eligible Employee and excluding any diminution attributable to the fact that Deluxe is no longer a public company;

Any material reduction in an Eligible Employee’s aggregate compensation and incentive opportunities, or any failure by the Company to comply with any other written agreement between an Eligible Employee and the Company, other than an isolated, insubstantial and inadvertent failure not occurring in bad faith and which is remedied by the Company promptly after receipt of written notice thereof given by the Eligible Employee;

The Company requiring an Eligible Employee to be based at any location more than 50 miles from his/her then current location;

Any purported termination by the Company of an Eligible Employee’s employment which is not effected pursuant to a written notice of termination specifying the reasons for his/her termination and the manner by which such reasons constitute “Cause”; or

Any request or requirement by the Company that an Eligible Employee take any action or omit to take any action that is inconsistent with or in violation of the Company’s ethical guidelines and policies as the same existed within the 120 day period prior to the termination date or any professional ethical guidelines or principles that may be applicable to the Eligible Employee.

Amendment and Termination. The Company reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to amend or terminate the Plan, in whole or in part, at any time and for any reason, except that (i) no amendment or termination may be effected that purports to reduce the benefits described in Appendix I that may become payable

Severability. If any of the Plan’s provisions are found to be unlawful, such finding will not affect the Plan’s other provisions unless such finding makes impossible or impracticable the Plan’s functioning, in which case appropriate provisions will be adopted so that the Plan may continue to function.

Incompetency. If the Plan Administrator finds that a Participant is unable to care for his/her affairs or is otherwise legally incompetent, and a claim for Plan benefits has not been made by a duly appointed legal representative, such benefits may be paid in any manner the Plan Administrator determines, and such payment will be a complete discharge of liability for Plan benefits to which such Participant was entitled.

Not an Employment Contract. Nothing contained in this Plan is intended to create any the Company liability to retain any Eligible Employee in its service. All Eligible Employees remain subject to termination as if the Plan had not been established, and all employees are considered to be at-will, whose employment may be terminated by Deluxe or any of its Affiliates, at any time with or without prior notice.

Financing. Severance benefits payable under the Plan will be paid out of the general assets of the Company. No Participant’s right to receive payments under the Plan will be secured by any assets of the Company or any the Company.

Non-Transferability. A Participant has no right to assign or otherwise dispose of any interest under the Plan, nor may any right be assigned or transferred by operation of law. Neither the Company nor any other the Company will make any payment under the Plan to a Participant’s assignee or creditor, except as required by law.

Legally‑Required Withholdings. Benefits under the Plan will be subject to all legally‑required withholdings, including tax withholdings.

409A Limitation. Notwithstanding any provision in the Plan to the contrary, the Plan is intended to qualify as an involuntary separation arrangement that is either exempt from Section 409A of the Internal Revenue Code (“Section 409A”) or compliant with Section 409A. Each payment made under this Plan shall be treated as a separate payment for purposes of Section 409A. Specifically, any benefits paid within the Applicable 2‑1/2 Month Period (as defined below) are intended to constitute separate payments (for purposes of Treasury Regulation § 1.409A‑2(b)(2)) that are exempt from Section 409A pursuant to the “short‑term deferral” rule set forth in Treasury Regulation § 1.409A‑1(b)(4). Any provision of reimbursement for reasonable outplacement expenses actually incurred by the Employee is intended to be exempt under Treasury Regulation § 1.409A‑1(b)(9)(v). To the extent that any benefits do not qualify for the foregoing exemptions, such benefits are intended to be exempt from Section 409A under the “involuntary separation pay plan” exception set forth in Treasury Regulation § 1.409A‑1(b)(9)(iii), up to the maximum extent permitted by such exception (generally, two times the lesser of the Employee’s annualized compensation or the compensation limit then in effect under section 401(a)(17) of the Code). The term “Employment Termination” shall be interpreted to mean a “separation from service” as that term is defined under Section 409A to the extent necessary to qualify the arrangement as an involuntary separation arrangement or to comply with Section 409A’s payment rules. Furthermore, to the extent necessary to comply with Section 409A’s payment rules, an event shall not constitute a “Change of Control” unless such event qualifies as a “change in control event” under Section 409A. “Applicable

Claims Procedure. An individual who believes he/she is eligible for benefits under the Plan, or believes he/she is eligible for benefits that are different from those being offered to the individual, may submit a written claim with the Plan Administrator. Any such claim must be submitted within 180 days after the employment termination upon which the claim is based, and any claim submitted after that period will be denied as untimely. The claim will be reviewed by one or more individuals appointed by the Plan Administrator to serve as the Claim Administrator under the Plan. The claimant will be informed of the Claim Administrator’s decision regarding the claim within 90 days after it is filed. Under special circumstances, the Claim Administrator may require an additional period of not more than 90 days to review a claim. If this occurs, the claimant will be notified in writing as to the length of the extension, the reason for the extension, and any other information needed in order to process the claim. If a claimant is not notified within the 90-day period (or 180-day period, if so extended), the claimant may consider the claim to be denied. If a claim is denied, in whole or in part, the claimant will be notified in writing of the specific reason(s) for the denial, the Plan provision(s) on which the decision was based, what additional material or information is relevant to the case and what procedure the claimant should follow to get the claim reviewed again. The claimant then has 60 days to appeal the decision to the Claim Administrator. The appeal must be submitted in writing to the Claim Administrator. A claimant may request to review pertinent documents and may submit a written statement of issues and comments. A decision as to a claimant’s appeal will be made within 60 days after the appeal is received. Under special circumstances, the Claim Administrator may require an additional period of not more than 60 days to review an appeal. If this occurs, the claimant will be notified in writing as to the length of the extension, not to exceed 120 days from the day on which the appeal was received. If a claimant’s appeal is denied, in whole or in part, the claimant will be notified in writing of the specific reason(s) for the denial and the Plan provision(s) on which the decision was based. The Claim Administrator’s decision on an appeal will be final and binding on all parties and persons affected. If a claimant is not notified within the 60-day (or 120-day, if so extended) period, the claimant may consider the appeal to be denied. The claim procedure in the Plan, including appeals, must be fully exhausted and a final determination made by the Claim Administrator before a claimant may file a lawsuit based on a denial of Plan benefits. Any lawsuit for Plan benefits must be filed within one year after the Claim Administrator’s final determination of the claim for benefits.

Participants’ Rights Under ERISA. Participants have certain rights and protections under ERISA. ERISA provides that Participants are entitled to:

Examine, without charge, at the Company’s main office and at other specified locations, such as worksites, all documents governing the Plan, including a copy of the annual Form 5500 filed with the Department of Labor.

Obtain, upon written request to the Plan Administrator, copies of documents governing the Plan’s operation, including insurance contracts and collective bargaining agreements, if any, the annual Form5500 filed with the Department of Labor, and an updated summary plan description. The Plan Administrator may make a reasonable charge for the copies.

Plan Document. This document constitutes both the plan document and summary plan description.

Other Important Facts.