The federal government is phasing out the penny next week, and Islanders who pay cash for goods and services should be aware of the transition, says Finance, Energy and Municipal Affairs Minister Wes Sheridan.

“The federal government is encouraging businesses to round their cash transactions,” says Minister Sheridan. “We decided to adopt the federal guidelines, which is consistent with what we’re hearing from the other provinces.”

As a result, cash payments for a product or service at any Government of Prince Edward Island office will be rounded up, or down, according to the guidelines.

The federal guidelines are as follows:

• Amounts ending in 1 cent and 2 cents are rounded down to the nearest 10 cents;

• Amounts ending in 3 cents and 4 cents are rounded up to the nearest 5 cents;

• Amounts ending in 6 cents and 7 cents are rounded down to the nearest 5 cents;

• Amounts ending in 8 cents and 9 cents are rounded up to the nearest 10 cents.

The rounding only applies to cash payments.

For more information, see the Department of Finance Canada website: Phasing out the penny.