Re-register! New tax system being rolled out next February
The Inland Revenue Department is introducing a new online Tax Receivable System to empower the taxpaying community and enhance tax collections in the Virgin Islands.
This new system is expected to be rolled out in February 2023.
The upgraded system — Standard Integrated Government Tax Administration System (SIGTAS 3.0) — automates the administration of all taxes and licences.
Commissioner of Inland Revenue Karen Smith-Aaron said the department is about to embark on a public relations campaign to enhance awareness about the new system, highlight the benefits, and encourage the advanced re-registration for taxpayers.
“Taxpayers are at the heart of the new system. They are now empowered to view their tax information,” Smith-Aaron said.
She said taxpayers will be happy to know of the benefits of the new system, which enables taxpayers to submit a registration form online, print a registration certificate, query accounts online, check unfiled tax periods, follow the status of any pending request, and communicate easily with the tax administration through an embedded messaging centre.
The Commissioner explained that the priority is the ‘re-registration’ of businesses and the registration of all persons of employable age.
This registration will be done via an online link where persons will input relevant information and upload all necessary documents.
“We need all taxpayers on board. It is very important that we work together to get the data entered the system which will make the entire process run more smoothly. Once we get all taxpayers registered, persons will be able to begin paying online when the new tax receivable system goes LIVE in February 2023,” she noted.
Smith Aaron mentioned an official checklist of all the required information will be disseminated to the public when the online registration link goes live by mid-June.
The Department of Information Technology (DoIT) is also a key player in the new system’s development and rollout with regards to training and maintenance.
Director of DoIT, Annabelle Skelton-Malone said: “My team is proud to work on such a major initiative with Inland Revenue. We want to ensure taxpayers that it is user-friendly, and we are in place to offer all the necessary support to facilitate the registration.”
Both IRD and DoIT are under the remit of the Ministry of Finance. Acting Deputy Financial Secretary (Ag) Jeremy Vanterpool said the system upgrade is in alignment with the existing e-government initiative.
“The Ministry of Finance is cognisant that streamlining processes is very important. The upgrade of SIGTAS is just one of the many cogs which will enhance the machinery of government. We feel very confident that this will bring us the level of efficiency that we need within central government,” Vanterpool said.
The public will receive updates on the new system and re-registration drive in the coming weeks.
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I hope the SIGTAS upgrade goes well but IRD…please fix how your staff are treating people and operating the collections. It’s the people using the system and not the system most the time that’s the problem.
I also know that taxes are important to the sustainable development and growth of a country but my God! The projects and maintenance I see going on are of such a substandard level that almost everything is not being given value for money. The people deserve to drive on roads that are not designed to make them spend money on repairs, they deserve to have a government free of corruption and COI and cocaine and all this drama. What a crazy time we’re living in.
And who exactly is capable in the Civil Service of running the computer system program? The Belligerent Belongers? They have trouble flushing a toilet let alone operating a computer. They sit there looking at the screen like a deer in a headlight. This won’t go well.
We should contract out the running of the system to an established IT facilities company ( not the cronies from Jamaica ) with a condition that a number of locals are trained to run it in the future.
Will taxpayers still have to wait in line for hours/days just to pay their taxes? Property tax is the worst. Wait all day at IR just to pay less than a $50 property tax!
I hope we can pay online. This should of been implemented years ago.
” Once we get all taxpayers registered, persons will be able to begin paying online when the new tax receivable system goes LIVE in February 2023,” she noted.”
“empower the taxpaying community” lol what an oxymoron.
Water bills are long overdue for online payments.
This had to be done, new world order.
Alot of us will hold our heads when properties will be taken away by government.
Stay tuned.
This had to be done, new world order.
Alot of us will hold our heads when properties will be taken away by government.
Stay tuned.