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| Thursday, 25 November 2004 |
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Importance of understanding responsibilities stressed: Policy makers and taxpayers should help increase revenue - Commissioner by Channa Kasturisinghe The Commissioner of Inland Revenue R.P.L. Weerasinghe highlighted the importance of policy makers and those liable to pay taxes to understand their responsibilities in increasing the country's tax revenue. He was addressing a Budget Highlights meeting organised by the Japan Sri Lanka Technical and Cultural Association at Sasakawa Hall on Monday. He said that certain sections of the society frequently ask why the department fails to achieve the revenue target forgetting that policy makers and those who are liable to pay taxes too have greater roles to play in achieving these targets. He said the country's tax revenue on GDP is the lowest in the region but the actual causes are beyond the Department's control. "For example, today there are many BOI companies operating in the country who contribute immensely to the GDP. However, they do not contribute to the tax revenue. Therefore, policy makers should consider these facts seriously if they are to increase the country's tax revenue," Weerasinghe said. He said that although everybody is asking why the tax revenue is low some of them have forgotten their responsibilities of contributing by way of paying taxes. "Everybody is asking for concessions and nobody is interested in increasing taxes. They should understand that it is not the sole responsibility of the Inland Revenue Department to increase revenue," he said. The Commissioner said the budget has new proposals to improve tax compliance and to introduce a modern structure to improve the tax administration. Although there are four million people in the workforce in Sri Lanka the number of tax files is as low as 200,000. Therefore, the government has proposed to widen the tax net and to take measures to improve tax compliance. In order to promote tax administration the government has proposed new measures including establishment of an appeals unit under a separate Commissioner, implement a Tax Charter and to set up an information centre to collect and analyse information on tax evaders. |
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