Acting director of the Department of Inland Revenue Shunda Strachan.
By YOURI KEMP
Tribune Business Reporter
ykemp@tribunemedia.net
THE acting director of the Department of Inland Revenue (DIR) said the agency is $100m over its revenue target for the current fiscal year.
Shunda Strachan, speaking at the weekly press conference at the Office of The Prime Minister, said that the department has collected $930m over the current fiscal year compared to the $830m it had been projected to collect.
The government collected $136m from real property tax, $712m from Value Added Tax (VAT) and an additional $81m from business license taxes.
The DIR is “actively” following up with people who may be in arrears with their real property taxes or other taxes to encourage them to come in and pay their taxes if they do not know that they owe the government.
She also said: “So our goal is to get the never payers to pay, to get the sometimes payers to become consistent payers and that is working.”
From the “never payers” brackets the government has received $47m alone.
Ms Strachan also said: “The fact that we're over projections, tells us that persons are hearing the cry of the government that they need to pay their taxes, and persons are paying.”
She continued, “So even when you look at real property tax. When we look at the categories and we have four categories: We have owner occupied taxpayers; residential taxpayers; the foreign owned vacant land owners VAT category, and, of course, the commercial bucket.
She added: “The owner occupied property owners have really surpassed our budget figures and they are the ones that are really coming forward and meeting their obligations.”
Out of the $136m in real property taxes about $95m was from “current taxpayers” that have been consistent over the years.
One of the important changes to the real property tax regime is the cap has been lifted and now anyone with an owner occupied property over $8m will now have to pay $120,000 per year rather than the cap at $60,000 at $6m and up. From this the DIR is looking to rake in a considerable amount of revenue in the next fiscal year.
More like this story
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- $1BN BLACK HOLE OF UNPAID TAXES: Inland Revenue reveals scale of outstanding arrears by Bahamians
- Govt says amnesty is over for delinquent real property tax
- Gov't is 'upping efforts' on $461m tax arrears
Comments
KapunkleUp 2 years, 5 months ago
Approximately 118,000 households in our country. Average income of $28,000 per person. 2 people working per household = $56,000. Divide VAT income by number of households = $6,033. Average household pays almost 11% of its total income in just VAT. Add on property tax, fuel surcharges, etc... Anyone wanting to raise taxes needs to be whipped !
donald 2 years, 5 months ago
you forgot the big one, import duty taxes:(
KapunkleUp 2 years, 5 months ago
Absolutely right. Duty is the biggest one.
tribanon 2 years, 5 months ago
This cruel Davis led PLP administration refuses to admit or even disclose its great windfall in taxes being collected from the very high gasoline tax rate being applied to the exorbitant price of each and every gallon of gasoline being pumped by the gas station operators.
And its the cruel Davis led PLP administration and Sir Snake who are laughing all the way to the bank as most of us struggle daily to keep some gas in our vehicles. Heartless Davis should have long ago announced a gasoline tax holiday for at least a year or so to help ease the enormous financial burden most suffering Bahamians are faced with today. Just how cruel can Davis be? He's certainly no man of the people...that's for sure!
sheeprunner12 2 years, 5 months ago
The PLP Cabinet are heartless. But you get what you vote for.
tribanon 2 years, 5 months ago
I voted last September for one of the independent candidates who ran in my constituency. And he would have been 100 times better than the lame-brained and corrupt PLP thug who is now my constituency's MP.
BONEFISH 2 years, 5 months ago
@ Sheeprunner. if whatever government is in power, don't attempt to collect taxes when they will have to borrow. Eventually they will not be able to borrow and the IMF will take over,
I use to think all the foolish people in this country are PLPs. Your comments prove there are foolish people who support the FNM also.
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