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Dublin: 12 °C Sunday 19 May, 2013

New rules allow workers to pay tax online by credit card

A legal tweak means people using Revenue’s online services can pay income tax by VISA or MasterCard for the first time.

Revenue's online service, ROS, can now accept payments via credit card.
Revenue's online service, ROS, can now accept payments via credit card.

THE SELF-EMPLOYED or other people with secondary sources of income can now pay their income tax bill online by credit card for the first time.

A legal tweak revealed this week means the Revenue can now accept credit card payments for the first time, having previously been legally barred from doing so.

The majority of PAYE workers have their income tax taken directly out of their pay packets by their employer, though people with other sources of income – such as occasional weekend cash-in-hand work – are expected to disclose this income to the Revenue themselves.

Similarly, self-employed sole traders are expected to file their own tax returns and pay their annual income tax liability in a single lump payment.

Secondary legislation activated by the Revenue means workers who were previously forced to keep cash aside can now pay their tax bill through a VISA or MasterCard – though doing so will incur a transaction charge of 1.49 per cent.

While credit cards have been accepted for telephone payments since last year, payments over the phone incur a higher transaction charge of 1.69 per cent.

A Revenue spokeswoman said it was “our policy to provide as many payment options as possible to our customers.”

Read: Child benefit, medical cards and dole payments: IMF’s hitlist for next Budget

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Comments (5 Comments)

  • “When a self-governing people confer upon their government the power to take money from some and give it to others, the process will not stop until the last bone of the last taxpayer is picked bare.”

    (Kershner’s First Law)
    Howard E. Kershner

    Reply
  • LeeKelly 30/07/12 #

    So basically they’re introducing a system whereby the payee is punished with an transcriptional fee in the hope that more people with secondary sources of income will rush to submit a tax return for it?

    Reply
  • If they want to maximise revenue they should introduce a system whereby if someone shops some miscreant for tax evasion they get 10% of the fines and revenue in that financial year tax free.

    On paying tax with credit cards, no doubt someone here will go spouting off about robbing Peter to pay Paul but frankly most people in that sort of situation would probably simply not pay Paul at all. “Income tax? Me? No I won this on the horses.”

    Reply

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