Commonwealth Entities (Payment Surcharges) (Consequential Provisions and Other Matters) 2024

# Commonwealth Entities (Payment Surcharges) Bill 2024 ## What it does This bill cleans up the legal framework around payment surcharges that Australian government agencies can charge when you pay by credit card or PayPal. It makes technical updates to existing laws so they work properly with a separate law that sets out the new surcharge rules. ## Why it matters If you pay government fees online—like for visas, citizenship applications, or customs declarations—this affects what surcharges you might be charged and how those fees are handled. The bill also sorts out what happens to surcharges that were already collected before these new rules came into effect. ## Key details - **Migration fees affected**: The bill updates rules for credit card and PayPal surcharges on visa and citizenship applications specifically. - **Backpay handling**: There's a section dealing with surcharges already collected before this law starts, including a new tax on those payments. - **Multiple trigger dates**: Different parts of the bill start at different times—some when the main surcharge law begins, others only if a related tax law also passes. This is purely technical but means not everything kicks in on the same day.

🔒 Voting closed — this bill has been decided by parliament