President Trump’s goal of having Uncle Sam ditch paper checks and move to all-digital payments and receipts has sparked fierce opposition from accountants who say many of their clients won’t be able to cope with a paperless world.

From the elderly to the Amish, and from legal migrant workers to those who are simply skeptical of anything related to the federal government, there are people filing taxes, paying bills and collecting government checks without access to computers, much less bank accounts.

“I think this is a terrible mistake,” Loretta Lomas, an enrolled tax agent, told the government.

“Too many clients are frightened of ACH [automated clearinghouse] transactions in general and many refuse to use the internet,” she said, using the term for bank-to-bank payments without a check. “Many people are mistrusting of the internet and fear being scammed. A lot of my older clients, and those that live in rural areas, do not even own a computer. Some do not even have bank accounts. This is an onerous imposition on people’s rights to handle their finances as they see fit.”

The overwhelming sentiment was to wait and not force the change.

“You should trust that the professional community beats this drum for you, but if you make this mandate, you will create an entire nation of elderly or particular religious population segments who will become late payers,” said Cathleen Volk, a certified public accountant.

She said it was tough enough to convince some clients to file their taxes electronically, and giving up checks could be a step too far.

“I have a contingent of elderly and Amish — old order sect clients who either cannot grasp technology or are barred from grasping it by their beliefs. How is this not a violation of their rights to utilize the banking system to lawfully and timely pay their tax obligations?” she said.

Mr. Trump ordered the government to drag the Luddites into the 21st century in a March 25 directive calling for a phaseout of Uncle Sam’s use of paper checks for payments and receipts.

As of Sept. 30, he said any payments not required to be made in paper by law “shall cease.”

The president said paper checks are an invitation to fraud. They are 16 times more likely to be reported lost, stolen or tampered with than electronic fund transfers.

“This order promotes operational efficiency by mandating the transition to electronic payments for all federal disbursements and receipts by digitizing payments to the extent permissible under applicable law,” the president wrote.

He said exceptions could be made for those who don’t have access to banks or payment systems.

He also carved out exceptions for national security or law enforcement, and left it up to the Treasury Department to figure out how far and fast to go.

That led to the department’s call for comments from the public, spurring the pushback from accountants who warned of consequences.

Several accountant groups warned that electronic payments could upend a longstanding convention about when the government issues erroneously generous refunds.

Accountants said in the past they’ve urged recipients who get checks not to cash them. But if payments are automatically made to their accounts, they could end up responsible not only for paying it back — but they might incur interest owed for the amount of time they had Uncle Sam’s money in their hands.

The Texas Society of Certified Public Accountants also urged a “correction window” for times when a taxpayer’s transfer doesn’t go through.

Raymond Heinen, an enrolled agent in Illinois, suggested the government allow a 10-year transition and pay banks to assist with transactions for some populations.

“A number of my clients are unable to make electronic payments,” he wrote. “Some are intellectually incapable of functioning in the ‘electronic world’ — just as many of us cannot repair our own automobiles.”

The Washington Times reached out to the Treasury Department for this story.

The department is supposed to be grappling with the comments and deciding whether, and how, to move forward on Mr. Trump’s order.

• Stephen Dinan can be reached at sdinan@washingtontimes.com.