The Guyana Revenue Aut-hority (GRA) has called on businesses to seek its advice on the calculation of taxes and the completion of tax returns.
In a statement yesterday, the GRA advised that it is still hosting workshops and seminars free of cost on how to complete the various tax returns through its Tax Advisory Services Depart-ment.
Many business owners still lack knowledge on how to correctly complete a number of tax returns (the individual income tax, the Form 2, the form 5, property tax, value-added tax and corporation tax returns) and incomplete documents cannot be lodged or keyed into the system, the agency said in the statement.
“This anomaly affects employees, sole traders and companies who attempt to obtain Compliance Certifi-cates, Liability Certificates or even delay the processing of refunds in some cases,” the GRA said.
The GRA is urging companies as well as sole traders to seek the necessary assistance or advice on the computation and completion of the various tax returns from its trained tax specialists, Tax Advisory Services at its 200-201 Camp Street office.
In order to promote voluntary compliance, the GRA has over the years, spent vast sums of money and made available competent personnel to aid these objectives and continues to do so.
The organisation hosted a number of workshops and seminars for businesses whether company or sole traders during the first half of this year. According to Commissioner General Khurshid Sattaur, “These workshops and seminars are geared to ensure persons understand their rights and obligations under the various Tax Acts administer[ed] by the GRA and to enable them to comply fully without enforcement action.” He further noted that persons can make formal requests for workshops that will benefit them and their employees.
Recently, the GRA’s Public Education Department hosted outreach activities in regions Seven and Nine to educate and inform the community about the different taxes. The team also sought to clear up misconceptions about allowable expenses particularly in the case of self-employed persons which lead some to pay little or no taxes, and to answer questions posed by taxpayers.
Further, the agency urges the public to contact its tax hotline via 227-6060 or 227-8222 or its website www.gra.gov.gy for more information on taxes.