IRS and VAT Service hold seminar for religious bodies

Koforidua, May 29, GNA - The Valued Added Tax (VAT) Service in collaboration with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) on Friday organized a seminar in Koforidua on effective tax administration for religious bodies drawn from the Eastern Region. The seminar was aimed at informing the religious bodies about their tax obligations to enable them to encourage their members to pay their tax.

Mr E.S. Manford, Eastern Regional Director, VAT Service, urged the participants to go back to their churches and mosques to teach members of their congregation who own businesses or are engaged in businesses that attract taxes to pay the correct tax.

Mr Manford advised them to encourage their members to always insist on their tax invoices when they transact business with persons who had been mandated to collect taxes on behalf of the state. He said the service had Client Service centres in all its offices where one could go for easy and speedy resolution of tax related issues and payments.

Mr Manford said VAT Service had an informant award system for persons who provide them with information leading to recovery of taxes that otherwise would have been lost to the state.

Mr K. Boakye Yiadom, Chief Inspector of Taxes-operations, IRS, told the religious leaders that as they encouraged their members to pay tithes, they must equally advise them to honour their tax obligations. He said a time had come for Ghanaians to honour their tax obligations for the country to generate revenue for development and stop the over-dependence on donor agencies for assistance. 29 May 09