|
IRS institutes new approach to revenue collection
Accra, April 15, Ghanadot/GNA - The
Internal Revenue Service will from May 1, 2008, introduce a
new method of revenue collection at all entry points where
the Ghana Community Net (GC Net) and Ghana Customs
Management Software (GCMS) systems operate.
Under the new method, the issuing of income tax receipts
would not be operational at the points where the GC Net and
GCMS operate. This means the payment points or Banks would
issue their online receipt in place of the income tax as is
done for Customs, Excise and Preventive Service (CEPS)
taxes.
The client would thus make a photocopy of the receipt issued
by the bank and submit the original to the tax district as
tax credit.
Mr Boakye Yiadom, Chief Inspector of Taxes in charge of
operations at the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), said this
on Tuesday in Accra, during a day’s seminar which was
organized by the IRS for Freight Forwarders.
It was under the theme; “Integrating the One Percent Tax
Payment into the GCNet System - A Faster Way of Clearing
Your Goods and Imports.”
Mr Yiadom said a list of companies and individuals in good
standing with the IRS would be fed into the GC Net system
and updated periodically, adding that importers on this list
would be exempted from the one per cent payment but would be
required to produce a valid Tax Clearance Certificate for
inspection by the CEPS officials for the clearance of their
goods at the ports.
He said for any port to attract vessels and imports in
significant quantities, the turnaround time should be low.
“More often than not importers have cited the Internal
Revenue Service business process as one of the contributing
factors of delays at our entry points,” he said.
He said to correct the situation, an administrative
directive was issued in 2001 which allowed first time
importers to pay one per cent of the declaration Import Form
value of imports as tax on account to clear their goods.
Mr. Yiadom said regular tax payers were to obtain valid tax
clearance certificates to clear imports.
“Unfortunately, both have been subjected to serious abuses.
While most regular tax payers have taken refuge under the
one per cent payment, ignoring their regular tax
obligations, others have resorted to the use of fake tax
clearance certificates.”
He said the IRS had decided to adopt the GC Net and GCMS
system to minimize fraud and eliminate malpractices
associated with the existing arrangement, and improve on the
turnaround time for the clearance of goods.
Mr. Yiadom said the move was also to enable the IRS to take
advantage of the ICT technology in order to enhance revenue
collection.
He said at entry points where the GC Net was not available,
the existing system of presenting Tax Clearance Certificates
to be vetted by the IRS officers would continue.
Mr. Yiadom said with the take-off of the new system, the IRS
staff at the affected entry points would be withdrawn.
He appealed to the Freight Forwarders to lend their maximum
co-operation to the new system to make it successful.
Mr. Tannel Atubra, Chairman of the Ghana Institute of
Freight Forwarders at the Kotoka International Airport, told
the Ghana News Agency in an interview that the new system
was very favourable, since the quick and convenient
clearance of goods was crucial to importers.
He, however, suggested that the one per cent withholding tax
payment be reduced to make payment much easier for
importers.
GNA
|
