IRS wants accurate accounts

Accra, March 29, GNA - The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) on Thursday urged accountants to prepare accurate accounts of their establishment to ensure that the state was not deprived of revenue due her.

Major Ablorh-Quarcoo (Rtd), Commissioner of IRS said there was the need for IRS and Accountants to develop a relationship that would promote and enhance the tax collection system.

It was important for accountants to ensure that their clients kept records of their trading to enable them to track and verify figures so that they don't assist the taxpayer in cheating the system, the Commissioner said.

Major Ablorh-Quarcoo, who was interacting with tax consulting firms, auditors, financial advisers and taxpayers at "Commissioner's Meeting" said filing of tax returns was a statutory obligation that every person who earned income should do religiously.

The meeting, which was held under the theme: "Professional and the tax laws of Ghana", served as a platform to deepen interaction and understanding between tax administrators and taxpayers and to promote appreciation of one another's role and contributions as well as challenges.

He said regular interaction with taxpayers was an important aspect of their tax education that would enable the public to know of what is expected of them in terms of paying taxes. He noted that many Ghanaian businesses didn't like to keep records of their dealings therefore good record keeping was one of the difficulties facing accountants who worked with those firms. Mr Ablorh-Quarcoo warned against the practice where some accountants and tax auditors presented false accounts of their clients' tax returns.

"As professional accountants, it's necessary we hold our integrity as high as we can," the Commissioner advised. He said the IRS was improving and expanding its network to capture all taxpayers outside the tax net. Mr W.C.S Agyebeng, Assistant Commissioner of IRS took the meeting through recent amendments to the tax law.