The government has paid more than £1.5 million to the Isle of Man Post Office in the last financial year for a range of services.
Services include vehicle licensing, rates collection and MiCard transactions, Treasury Minister Chris Thomas told Tynwald.
Responding to a question from Speaker Juan Watterson, the minister said government makes no direct payments to sub‑postmasters, with all funding routed through the Post Office itself.
Payments
The Department of Infrastructure paid £611,486 to the Post Office in 2023/24 for vehicle licence commission, rising to £681,582 in 2024/25 and £635,174 so far this year.
Treasury payments for rates collection commission totalled £71,219 in 2023/24, £73,499 in 2024/25 and £74,301 to date in 2025/26.
Pay cheque‑cashing costs were described as minimal, with Mr Thomas confirming they amounted to just £27 so far this year, after Watterson sought clarification.
Spending on MiCard services reached £775,459 in 2023/24, falling to £594,945 in 2024/25 and £578,777 to date this year.
The minister noted that more than £200,000 of the 2023/24 figure related to prior‑year costs posted late.
Across all other service lines, including postage, franking and printing, government bodies spent £1.5 million in 2023/24, £1.56 million in 2024/25 and £1.36 million so far in 2025/26.
Mr Thomas said a full departmental breakdown is available in writing on request.
The full exchange can be heard below:
