Suncorp customers will no longer be able to deposit cheques into their accounts as Australia transitions towards online payment methods.
The bank, which has an estimated 1.2million members, will not accept cheques at any bank branches, post outlets or ATMs from Friday, February 14.
The payment method will be completely phased out from March 1 when cheques can no longer be deposited from personal or business bank accounts.
Cheques issued after March 1 will not be honoured but those written prior to this date will still be processed by the bank.
Suncorp informed its customers about the changes on its website and in select newspaper notices on Friday.
‘The amendments relate to upcoming changes to cheque deposit services no longer being available at Suncorp Bank and other related amendments,’ the notice read.
‘Suncorp Bank recommends that customers consider whether these changes will apply to their individual circumstances.’
The major bank said the decision was not made lightly but added that it offered customers a new opportunity to update their payment methods.
Cheque deposits will no longer be able to be made to any Suncorp Bank Accounts from February 14 and customers will no longer be able to issue cheques from March 1 (stock)
Chequebooks will be unavailable after March 1 with customers urged to shred or return any leftovers following this date.
Full details of the transition away from cheques is available in a nine-page document on Suncorp’s website.
It comes after the federal government announced cheque payments will be phased out by 2030.
Centrelink said it would no longer accept foreign currency cheques and money as payment methods for debt recovery on December 19, 2024.
Pensioners were informed of the move to digital payment methods in Services Australia’s annual Australian Pension News (APN) publication.
‘If you need to repay a Centrelink debt you will now need to use a different repayment method, outlined in your debt letter,’ the update read.
Cheques will be phased out in a staged transition plan and will begin with government agencies and departments with ‘high cheque usage’.
Commercial and government cheques won’t be issued from 2026 and the government will stop accepting cheque payments in 2028.
Australia is set to completely phase out cheques by 2030 as the country moves towards online payments instead (stock image)
The use of the payment method in Australia is set to end completely by 2030.
In the 1980s, 85 per cent of all non-cash payments were cheques, but they have long been surpassed by credit and debit cards as well as direct deposits.
Australia is far behind many other countries in phasing out cheque usage, with Denmark, for instance, ending their use of cheques in 2001.
Daily Mail Australia has contacted Suncorp Bank for comment.
