IRS delay may offer relief for credit card processors

Payment processing companies may get a reprieve on a new reporting requirement imposed by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service. The IRS reported last week it is delaying the enforcement of a law that requires companies that process credit-card transactions to report payment figures to the U.S. government. Despite the delay in enforcement, filing requirements are still in place. Information reporting for payment card and third-party network transactions are due to the IRS by February 28 of each year, according to Forbes magazine. Eventually, payment processors will be required to withhold 28 percent of payments to organizations for whom they do not have a verified taxpayer identification number, Bloomberg reports. "Given the complexities of the merchant transaction reporting requirement, the lack of timely and final reporting forms and the prevalence of still-unanswered questions, it is encouraging to see the IRS pay consideration," Mary Bennett, director of government and industry relations at the Electronic Transactions Association, told Bloomberg. A number of companies have complained that the IRS filing procedures are rife with errors, inefficiencies and slow processing, prompting the federal agency to respond with this regulatory delay.