PayTo Australia 2026: How It Works and What It Means for Merchants

PayTo is Australia's account-to-account payment system built on the New Payments Platform (NPP). It allows platforms and businesses to instantly move funds from a customer's bank account into a digital wallet using a pre-authorised agreement, without requiring a card network, interchange fee, or merchant service fee. QwikPay uses PayTo and PayID to load funds instantly into the customer's QwikPay wallet. When a customer scans a merchant's QR code, the payment moves from their QwikPay wallet to the merchant's wallet with no card network, no interchange, and no merchant service fee. This is why QwikPay charges merchants $0 per transaction.

What is PayTo?

PayTo is a real-time payment initiation service built on Australia's New Payments Platform. Launched by NPP Australia in 2022, PayTo allows businesses and platforms to create authorised payment agreements with customers. These agreements are stored securely in a central Mandate Management Service and can be used to move funds from a customer's bank account in real time.

Unlike card payments, which route through Visa, Mastercard, or eftpos networks and incur interchange fees and scheme fees at every step, PayTo operates directly on Australia's banking infrastructure. There is no card network in the middle, which means no interchange fee and no scheme fee on PayTo transactions.

PayTo is not the same as PayID. PayID is the identifier system that lets you send money to a phone number, email, or ABN instead of a BSB and account number. PayTo is the agreement layer that allows a business or platform to initiate payments from a customer's account with their prior authorisation.

How does PayTo work?

PayTo works in three steps.

Step 1 - Agreement created

The customer authorises a PayTo agreement through their bank's app or internet banking. The agreement specifies who can initiate payments, for what amount or frequency, and for how long. The agreement is stored in the NPP Mandate Management Service. The customer can view, pause, or cancel it at any time through their bank.

Step 2 - Funds initiated

When a payment is triggered, the platform or business initiates the movement of funds against the PayTo agreement. The NPP processes this in real time and funds move from the customer's bank account to the destination account or wallet within seconds.

Step 3 - Instant availability

Because PayTo operates on NPP rails, funds are available immediately. There is no next-business-day wait, no batch window, and no processing delay.

What is PayID and how does it relate to PayTo?

PayID and PayTo are two different services built on the same New Payments Platform infrastructure.

PayID is an identifier service. It lets you link your bank account to a simple identifier (mobile number, email, or ABN) so others can send you money without needing your BSB and account number. When someone pays your PayID, the NPP looks up the linked account and routes the payment there instantly. PayID payments are initiated by the sender.

PayTo is an agreement service. It lets a platform or business initiate payments from a customer's account with their prior authorisation. PayTo payments are initiated by the platform or business, not the sender.

QwikPay uses both. PayID provides the routing identifier. PayTo provides the agreement infrastructure that enables instant wallet top-ups with no card network involved.

How long do PayTo payments take?

PayTo transactions settle in real time, typically within seconds. Because PayTo operates on the NPP, which was built for instant settlement, there is no processing delay, no batch settlement window, and no next-business-day wait. For QwikPay customers, wallet top-ups from their bank account appear immediately.

How does QwikPay use PayTo?

QwikPay uses PayTo and PayID as the mechanism for customers to load funds instantly into their QwikPay wallet from their bank account. When a customer adds money to their QwikPay wallet, PayTo initiates the movement of funds from their bank account in real time. No card required, no card network fee, and no processing delay.

When the customer scans a merchant's QR code, the payment moves from their QwikPay wallet to the merchant's QwikPay wallet. This wallet-to-wallet transaction via QR code carries no interchange fee and no merchant service fee because no card network is involved at any point in the flow.

Funds in the merchant's QwikPay wallet are available for on-demand withdrawal to their bank account at any time.

The full payment flow:

Customer bank account → (PayTo/PayID, instant) → Customer QwikPay wallet → (QR code scan) → Merchant QwikPay wallet → (on-demand withdrawal) → Merchant bank account

This is why QwikPay charges merchants $0 per transaction. There is no card network, no interchange fee, and no scheme fee at any point.

What is a PayTo agreement?

A PayTo agreement is an authorisation a customer gives to a platform or business to initiate payments from their bank account. The agreement is created in the NPP Mandate Management Service and is visible to the customer through their bank's app or internet banking.

A PayTo agreement specifies:

• Who is authorised to initiate payments (the platform or business)
• The maximum payment amount per transaction or per period
• The frequency of payments (one-off, weekly, monthly, or ongoing)
• The duration of the agreement

Customers can view all active PayTo agreements through their bank, pause them, modify them, or cancel them at any time. This gives customers full visibility and control over which platforms can move funds from their account.

For QwikPay: your PayTo service agreement with QwikPay (operated by Finwise Au PTY LTD ABN 62 676 508 464) governs how funds are loaded from your bank account into your QwikPay wallet. You can view the full agreement at /payto-service-agreement.

Is PayTo secure?

Yes. PayTo agreements are stored in the NPP Mandate Management Service, operated by NPP Australia Limited on behalf of participating financial institutions. Each agreement requires explicit authorisation from the customer through their bank. No platform or business can initiate a PayTo payment without a valid, active agreement in place.

For QwikPay specifically: QwikPay is operated by Finwise Au PTY LTD (ABN 62 676 508 464), AUSTRAC registered, with real-time fraud monitoring on every transaction. QwikPay runs quarterly processes to automatically return inactive or unused wallet funds to your bank account. Your funds are always yours.

PayTo and the RBA surcharge ban

From 1 October 2026, the RBA's surcharge ban prevents merchants from passing Visa, Mastercard, and eftpos transaction fees to customers as a surcharge. PayTo transactions are not affected by the ban because they operate outside card networks entirely. QwikPay transactions carry no surcharge to the customer and no transaction fee to the merchant regardless of the surcharge ban.

How does PayTo differ from a direct debit?

Traditional direct debits in Australia use the Bulk Electronic Clearing System (BECS), which processes in batches with a 1 to 3 business day settlement delay. PayTo is real-time. PayTo agreements are also stored in a central mandate registry visible to the customer through their bank. Unlike BECS direct debits, which were difficult to manage and required contacting the business to cancel, customers can cancel a PayTo agreement instantly through their bank app.

Which banks support PayTo in Australia?

PayTo is supported by all major Australian banks including Commonwealth Bank, ANZ, NAB, Westpac, and the majority of smaller banks and credit unions connected to the NPP. The full list of NPP-connected institutions grows regularly. If your bank supports the New Payments Platform and PayID, it almost certainly supports PayTo as well.