Paying rates and taxes can be one of the most laborious necessities a homeowner needs to do. But today, Mastercard unveiled a world-first for the City of Ekurhuleni, as ratepayers in the area will be able to make bill payments through their mobile phones.

To make online bill payments with Mastercard’s Masterpass on your mobile phone, you simply need to visit the City of Ekurhuleni’s e-Siyakhokha website, select the account you wish to pay, and choose Masterpass as the payment option.

Using the Masterpass app, you then scan the QR code displayed on screen and enter your ATM PIN or One Time PIN to authorise the payment.

“We are excited to launch Masterpass bill payments with the City of Ekurhuleni, making everyday payments simpler, faster and more convenient. Now ratepayers no longer need to carry cash and stand in long queues at customer care centres, nor do they have the inconvenience of logging into internet banking each time they want to pay their municipal account,” said Mark Elliott, division president of Mastercard in South Africa.

Once you are make use of the online payment system, you will also have access to check balances, look up your historical statements, lodge billing queries, and pay other municipal accounts like electricity and traffic fines.

Ramasela Ganda, chief financial officer of the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality explained that it wants to make it easy as possible for people to pay their rates and bills.

“We want to use the latest technologies to make it as easy as possible for residents to pay their City of Ekurhuleni municipal bills. Offering a selection of seamless payments options that can be used across devices is an important part of achieving that goal.”

We think that it is a really great initiative, and we really hope that more municipalities across the country take note of what the City of Ekurhuleni and Mastercard are doing. It will save residents an awful lot of time, and not only just waiting in line.