Card companies not set up to collect GST from online shoppers, Mastercard says

Thu, 11 Jul 2013

By Pattrick Smellie July 11 (BusinessDesk) – Credit card companies are “not set up” to collect tax on cardholder transactions and even if it were possible, online shoppers would quickly migrate to other payment platforms, such as PayPal, says Alfred Naffah, New Zealand manager for Mastercard. Responding to reports that three government agencies are examining ways to collect GST on low-value imports bought over the internet, Naffah said: “It’s a dangerous path to suggest we start playing the role of tax collectors.” Official estimates put the...

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