HMRC NO LONGER ACCEPTING CREDIT CARDS

We just went to pay our self assessment tax bill and got a warning of major change happening next week.  They will no longer accept personal credit cards as a way to pay..

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/withdrawal-of-personal-credit-card-payments-cip29

Oh, crud!  That's gonna cause some cash-flow issues!   

I heard that on the news this morning. It is because the law is changing that stops companies adding any extra charges over payment by cash. They expect some businesses to simply say no to credit and debit cards.

Around here pubs add an extra fee if paying by card. Interested in seeing what they do, stop accepting cards, or maybe increase prices a little.

It was announced way back in October. See here for example. https://www.headforpoints.com/2017/10/10/hmrc-to-stop-accepting-personal-credit-cards-on-13th-january/

It was announced way back in October. See here for example. https://www.headforpoints.com/2017/10/10/hmrc-to-stop-accepting-personal-credit-cards-on-13th-january/

Thanks for the link.

It will become illegal to surcharge credit card payments from January.  Companies will have to decide whether to stop accepting credit cards altogether or to absorb the costs.  With interchange fees now capped at 0.3% under EU law on personal cards, it should not make much of a difference to retailers.
(That is the theory.  In reality, card processors appear to have got around the 0.3% cap on interchange fees by inventing new additional charges for retailers.)
HMRC has decided to take the first option.

Well, on the good side, the taxi company will stop adding the surcharge on the fares!  It's too bad HMRC doesn't offer the option of paying a card surcharge as, literally, a voluntary option.

Oh, well.

It's too bad HMRC doesn't offer the option of paying a card surcharge as, literally, a voluntary option.

Oh, well.

Wasn’t it always a voluntary option? You could pay by credit card with the surcharge or pay by cash, the same option that some of the pubs around here do, or were HMRC accepting credit cards and not disclosing the additional charge? (I honestly don’t know the answer as this year is the first year I’ve done SA and I paid online but not with a credit card which I normally would do to get the rewards)

Absolutely no clue whatsoever....

AFAIK, they will still accept debit cards.

I logged into my HMRC account today to make my first payment of estimated taxes for 2017-18 and the options to pay included "by Debit Card" and "by Credit Card - additional fee applies".

It is this "by Credit Card - additional fee applies" option that is going away and confirms to me  they are quite clear that paying by credit card cost more than by debit card or direct bank transfer.