UK authorities aim to incorporate Open Banking payments into the Gov.UK Pay system through the implementation of a Payment Service Provider (PSP)
UK Government Announces Tender for New Payment Service Provider on Gov.UK Pay Platform
The UK government has issued a tender seeking a new Payment Service Provider (PSP) to process payments on the Gov.UK Pay platform. The PSP will be responsible for handling credit and debit card payments, as well as Open Banking payments, for a wide range of public sector services.
The Gov.UK Pay platform, developed and run by the Government Digital Service (GDS), has been in operation since at least September 2016. It currently supports central government, local authority, police forces, and NHS teams for digital payments, and has processed over 94 million transactions with a total value of £6 billion. The current PSP handling payments on the platform is Stripe.
The contract for the new PSP is valued at £49.2 million and will be for an initial 36-month period from early July 2025 to July 2028. The onboarding period for the PSP, as stated in the tender, is intended to allow for service provision to commence in 2026. The contract also includes two 12-month extension options.
The tender seeks a PSP for processing payments made by end users to services operated by local government, police, the armed forces, and some other public sector organizations. The PSP will be expected to integrate with the Gov.UK Pay platform, which is designed to enable the public to make payments for public sector services online and via telephone.
Further reading suggests a substantial increase in tax payments to HMRC using the 'Pay by Bank' method. In 2021, HMRC integrated Ecospend's 'Pay by Bank' technology to facilitate tax payments, marking the first time an Open Banking payment method was embedded within a government department's systems. One of the services using GOV.UK Pay is the HM Passport Office's 'apply for a passport' service.
The UK government's decision to seek a new PSP for the Gov.UK Pay platform comes as the platform has been utilized by over 1,000 distinct public sector services. The new PSP will play a crucial role in ensuring the smooth and secure processing of payments for these services, as well as supporting the continued growth and development of the platform.
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