Tax net widens: 300 Revenue Officers to go after tax dodgers

The Government is to position Revenue Officers countrywide in a bid to widen the tax net and collect more revenue.

“Some three hundred of them will be tasked to identify those eligible to pay taxes,” Treasury Secretary R. H. S. Samaratunga told the Sunday Times. He said their main tasks would be to ensure that proper assessments were carried out, persons evading taxes were identi- fied and directives to increase the revenue yield were carried out. The Treasury has set a target of Rs. 512 billion this year.

The Revenue Officers will supplement the role played by the existing branch offices of the Department of Inland Revenue. The proposal is the brainchild of Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake who is of the view that there are large numbers of people evading taxes. This was while some sections were under-paying taxes thus depriving the State of revenue. The Treasury Chief said that at present there were only 48,000 tax files. This is from a population of more than 20 million.

However, the proposal to post Revenue Officers to different districts has come under strong criticism from trade unions in the Department of Inland Revenue. They argue that a Revenue Management Information System (RMIS) to increase tax revenue, with assistance from the Asian Development Bank, is already in place. In addition, the unions are also not in favour of the Ministry of Finance carrying out the recruitment.

The Joint Committee of Trade Unions which comprises Commissioners, Staff Officers, Executive Officers and employees has written to Finance Minister Karunanayake raising strong objections. Mr Karunanayake is now in China attending the inaugural meeting of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank.

He said these officers would supplement the existing branch offices of the Department of Inland Revenue.