Americans will soon be able to make payments to the federal government through their Amazon Payments digital wallet.
The new arrangement covers payments to nearly 200 federal agencies, ranging from the Department of Interior to the Department of Defense, that use the US Treasury’s Pay.gov platform to create and host custom online payment forms.
The government says that its deal with Amazon - which follows similar ones with PayPal and Dwolla - is part of an ongoing effort to move away from paper-based processes to more efficient and secure electronic transactions.
By using the wallets, transactions can be carried out via the Internet or mobile app without the need to enroll in an additional system, provide personal information or risk card-centric fraud.
Corvelli McDaniel, assistant commissioner for revenue collections management, Bureau of the Fiscal Service, says: "Today, digital wallets are popular consumer payment channels because they provide a convenient, safe and simple customer experience."