New law to require essential businesses in Ireland to accept cash

The Irish Government has published the general scheme of the Access to Cash Bill, which is aimed at protecting the role of cash in the Irish financial system.

Under new legislation, businesses such as supermarkets, convenience stores and pharmacies will have to accept cash from customers, however other businesses such as salons are so far exempt from the rules.

There will also have to be a certain number of ATMs per 100,000 people in the country, and within 10km of where they live.

Currently, businesses must accept cash, unless it is clear they only accept other ways to pay. According to the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC), this can be as simple as a sign saying ‘card transactions only’. “As long as you decide to continue in the presence of such a sign, this is considered agreement,” it said.

If a business doesn’t clearly state that it only accepts certain methods of payment, it must accept cash.

The new legislation follows a recommendation made by the Retail Banking Review, published in November 2022. The review highlighted the role of cash in ensuring that people did not experience financial exclusion, and as a safety net in the event of electronic banking or the payments infrastructure being hit by outages or cyber-attacks.

“The move to a more digitalised banking model, along with the costs involved in handling cash, have incentivised the traditional banks to move away from cash,” said Minister for Finance Michael McGrath. “Although cash usage has declined in recent years, and this decline accelerated during the pandemic, it is important to protect its role in our society and economy in the future.

“We have to ensure that people are not left behind and we must avoid the risk of financial exclusion. We must recognise the important role that cash continues to play in all our lives, and this is a role I am determined to protect.”