Zambia Revenue Athority (ZRA) tax online bearing fruit.
IT is now 14 months since the Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA) introduced tax online technology and it is slowly bearing fruit.
The aim of these tax reforms is to make it easier and cheaper for taxpayers to do business with the Authority.
Tax Online is a website based system which ZRA has undertaken as a project in conjunction with an Indian based consultancy firm and has introduced the web based e-services such as e-registration, e-filing,?e-amendment, e-dissemination of information among others.
The importance of tax online technology among others is that it is an interactive service with the taxpayer 24 hours, meaning that a taxpayer can relate with ZRA and get the needed services offered from the comfort of their home or office through internet connectivity.
Whereas previously the tax office operated the one-sided in house computer programme called Integrated Tax Administration System (ITAS) and the home-grown known as Tax Administration Refund Processes Systems (TARPS).
The introduction of tax online technology brings with it a web window for efficient tax administration, for both the ZRA staff and the taxpayers in the interactive methodologies.
The system looks a bit unfriendly in the short term of learning procedure to the taxpayers especially on the part of the SMEs, but in the long run after the learning procedure is over, it will be more beneficial to both the ZRA and the taxpayers including the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).
This so because it will lessen the stress of going to and fro within the ZRA offices by the taxpayer for purposes of registration, filing, enquiry, to obtain forms and on the other hand the tax office will?speed the monitoring, assessing and updating the information on the taxpayers register.
The Authority has in its rank-and-file, not less 200,000 registered taxpayers and the majority of these being the SMEs.
Therefore, the mammoth task placed upon the shoulders of the ZRA is to ensure that the majority of the taxpayers if not all of them start relating with it online.?It is worthwhile to note here that small businesses have responded well to these tax reforms of tax online technology and have shown willingness to comply with the tax requirements.
This is evidenced by the frequency of taxpayers to the tax office at the headquarters to submit returns, obtain forms and the eagerness to learn on how to register and submit returns online through the?internet bureau at the tax office.
Equally the introduction of tax Online has also created consultancy works to most tax consultants by providing services of tax online services from their offices to most SMEs who cannot afford to submit?returns for themselves.
I am one among the regular visitors to the tax office due to the interaction with SMEs and what I write I see it with my own eyes.
However the challenges that I note among the SMEs is that most of those who frequent the tax office are those who do not own computers and they lack basic computer lessons to enable them submit returns online even from the internet café and hence submit them manually.
Members of staff at ZRA would agree with me that never at anytime have they ever become so busy other than the time when tax online technology was introduced in November 2013.?This is evidenced from long queues noticed especially at the advice center to educate and help especially the SMEs with various challenges that have come with tax online technology.?And ZRA has responded efficiently by training its friendly staff to handle any challenge that comes.
SMEs should ensure that they invest their money in buying computers and undergo training on how to use computers.
This is so because tax online technology requires a computer which is connected to the internet and equally how to operate it.
The exercise may be tough as it sounds but with little commitment and concentration it becomes a manageable task.
ZRA should intensify lessons and reach out to the remote places where taxpayers can be located in order to achieve its vision based on tax online technology.
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