Following queries raised with us concerning the facility to postdate tax payments made by debit card via ROS, we received confirmation from Revenue that this facility is no longer available. Revenue also advised that it is no longer possible to postdate credit card payments. Therefore payments made by debit or credit card are real time transactions.

According to the confirmation we received from Revenue; “the facility to postdate laser card and debit card payments is no longer available. This was available to Revenue on a concessionary basis but due to changes in card payment conditions the facility had to be withdrawn. Where a customer is now making a payment by laser/debit/credit card it should be clear to the customer at the time of payment that it is no longer possible to postdate a payment.”

Readers should note that in most cases it is possible to set up an RDI (ROS Debit Instruction) which will allow payment to be arranged in advance and to be made on the due date. Otherwise if you wish to make payment by debit or credit card on the due date then the payment will need to be put through on that due date.

Subsequent to the clarification above from Revenue, eBrief No. 34/12 was issued which confirms that payments made by credit or debit card are now in real time. The eBrief also confirms that payments made by credit card will incur a transaction charge of 1.49%. This is reduced from 1.69%.

The eBrief also notes that Revenue has now engaged the services of a “Payments Gateway”, to provide for the real time authorisation of debit and credit cards used to make payments on ROS. Users of ROS will be redirected to the Payments Gateway hosted webpage to make payment which will be authorised and processed in real time. The option to postdate a payment will not be available. Section 960EA of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 provides for the payment of tax by relevant payment methods, i.e. credit card, debit card and any other prescribed method or methods of payment.

Regulations (S.I. No. 255 of 2012) have been made which provide that a person may make a payment of tax by credit card using ROS, provided that the tax and the transaction charge (1.49%) is paid. Currently Revenue absorbs the charge for debit cards, however, according to the guidance on the Revenue website, this may change in the future.