Steam will start charging Aussies an extra 10% on games from July

WHILE IT’S BEEN a known threat for a while, Steam will finally be making good on their word and adding a 10% goods and services tax on all Australian software purchases from July, according to a report based on a developer email from Valve. The extra 10% will reportedly be included in the displayed price on the storefront and the tax later separated out, meaning that you will still be paying the price you see on Steam — but it will more than likely be a little steeper.

The Goods and Services Tax is far from news to Australians, with taxes for digital services being mentioned by then-treasurer Joe Hockey back in 2015, but so far the tax has not been applied to the online games network Steam, where prices are currently displayed in USD and then converted by your chosen payment service, be it your bank or PayPal.

It’s not just Aussies that will feel the local-tax burn, with national taxes being rolled out from March onwards for Japan, Switzerland, South Korea, Iceland, South Africa, India and to our neighbours in New Zealand, too.