Dáil Éireann Debate, Friday - 16 September 2016
319. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Finance his views on the fact that the Revenue Commissioners are refusing to issue cheques and are requiring those who seek a refund for overpayment of taxes to open bank accounts in SEPA format, even though they may usually use credit unions and post offices. [26048/16]
View answerI am advised by Revenue that electronic payment transfer is a faster, less expensive and more secure way of receiving tax refunds/repayments. It is Revenue's strategy to establish the use of electronic channels as the normal way of conducting tax business. More taxpayers are engaging electronically with Revenue and utilising electronic fund transfers to settle their tax liabilities and receive tax refunds.
From May 2016 any repayments of tax to taxpayers who are mandatory efilers are repaid to a bank account designated by the taxpayer. This is in accordance with Tax Returns and Payments (Mandatory Electronic Repayment) Regulations 2016 which requires the repayment of specified liabilities as defined in earlier 2011, 2012 and 2014 Regulations to be made by electronic means. These regulations apply mainly to business taxpayers and are in line with the National Payments Plan, approved by Government in 2014 which recommended the end of cheque usage between Government and business.
For taxpayers not falling within these regulations such as taxpayers registered for PAYE and LPT, Revenue continues to issue cheques for tax refunds where the taxpayer has opted not to provide bank account details. For the 7 months to July 2016, 65% of PAYE customers had opted to provide their bank account details to Revenue and receive their refunds directly into a bank account. This represented 324,000 refunds to the value of €208m. For the same period 181,000 repayment cheques to the value of €110m were issued to PAYE customers who had not provided bank account details.
Since the introduction of SEPA in 2013, Revenue can process electronic fund transfers to Credit Unions who have developed the necessary IT capability to accept such transfers.
