An online payment processor based in Boston and with offices in Toronto has received approval from the Canada Revenue Agency to let Canadians pay their taxes by credit card – adding to the list of businesses and organizations supported by the Plastiq platform.
Most banks and payment processors change businesses a fee to accept and process credit card payments and, depending on the volume and size of credit card payments a business may receive, it may not make financial sense for a smaller business to accept credit cards as a form of payment.
Plastiq solves that by flipping the model, charging the consumer a fee of two per cent of the transaction to process the credit card payment, allowing a smaller business to accept credit card payments at no costs via Plastiq’s online platform. It pitches the model as a win-win – businesses get credit card business they might otherwise lose out on, and consumers get a convenient form of payment, along with the possibility of credit card reward points and other perks.
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According to Plastiq, their platform has become popular with universities, as an example, allowing students (or their parents) to pay tuition by credit card, and earn lots of reward points in the process. With the latest announcement, Canadians can pay their taxes by credit card as well – perhaps reward points will take some of the sting out of the tax bill.
“Many Canadians are very savvy with their credit card use, balancing a number of preferred cards to ensure their rewards are maximized,” said Eliot Buchanan, co-founder and CEO of Plastiq, in a statement. “With Plastiq, a credit card is now a viable option to pay personal income tax, providing consumers with new choices and flexibility to strategically manage payments while capitalizing on the rewards offered by their credit card provider.”
H&R Block Canada has also partnered with Plastiq to make the platform available to its clients with a tax bill to pay.
“We are a client-focused organization so we are very pleased to be the first and only company to offer our clients the flexibility and convenience of paying their taxes however they choose,” said Richard Brown, president of H&R Block Canada, in a statement. “As a leader in our industry, we want to continue to look for new partnerships that allow us to work with innovators like Plastiq and expand our services.”