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The Australian Taxation Office says it won’t be following in the footsteps of its New Zealand counterparts in halting tax payments by cheque.
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ATO says it won’t halt cheque payments
24 December 2019
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The New Zealand Inland Revenue (IR) is currently consulting on a change in position regarding cheques as an accepted tax payment method.
In a draft standard practice statement, the IR has proposed to stop accepting cheques as a method for payment of tax from 1 March 2020, unless granted exception by the commissioner.
The IR reasons that the influence of technology has seen a significant shift in practice to use digital methods for making tax payments.
Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand said that while it acknowledged that cheque usage was declining, there remained a group of taxpayers who continue to rely on the method of payment who needed to be supported through the transition.
It has called for the IR to ensure there are affordable and practical alternatives available to taxpayers who require co-signatories, such as trusts, and to ensure that vulnerable taxpayers such as the elderly or those in remote and rural areas and those without stable internet access can continue to meet their tax obligations.
On the Australian front, the ATO currently still accepts payments by cheque, and it says it doesn’t intend to do away with it for the foreseeable future.
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“The ATO does not have plans to stop payments by cheque. However, the quickest and easiest way to pay is with BPAY or a credit/debit card,” an ATO spokesperson told Accountants Daily.
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