Tax payment on credit card

krisc_2

Hi,

Does anyone have experience of paying their income tax by credit card? I know HMRC charges a 1.5% fee for such transactions.

This could be great for a bit of stoozing. I'd rather keep my income tax payment in the bank earning 3% with A+L and in the meantime settle my tax return using my 0% for 10 months Sainsbury's credit card (should have got the Tesco 12 months 0% card - doh).

But i'm wondering if the payment goes through on the card as a 'purchase' or a cash advance? Cash advance wouldn't be so good due to charges.

I asked Sainsburys credit card people, but they said it depends how HMRC put it through.....hmmmn?

K

Mikeyorks

It's 1.25%.

Can't give you 100% on the transaction detail ..... but it's virtually certain to go through as a purchase. There would have been an outcry if people were additionally saddled with a cash advance fee. Treasury have been debating this for 15 years - and would certainly have picked that up when they did the enabling work?

HMRC don't process either Debit or Credit Card payments these days - they're all traded off to A&L (Billpay) (link at bottom of here) :-

http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/manuals/dmbmanual/dmbm200180.htm

.... Billpay should be able to give a definitive in the absence of someone who's actually used it?

John_Pierpoint

Is there anything about on-line payment to stop you making a small payment now. then a large one when the tax is due (at end of January I assume)?

Tarasam

John_Pierpoint wrote: »

Is there anything about on-line payment to stop you making a small payment now. then a large one when the tax is due (at end of January I assume)?

Nothing at all.

Ste_C

If you pay now, you'll probably get a better rate of interest back from HMRC than you would from most banks.

Pennywise

Ste_C wrote: »

If you pay now, you'll probably get a better rate of interest back from HMRC than you would from most banks.

No, if it's personal self assessment tax, you'll get nothing in the way of interest by paying early.