Personal Income Tax – Salary and Wage Earners (Form S) –What’s New on TPOS!
In this week’s Tax Talk, we will focus on Personal Income Tax (PIT)- Salary and Wage Earners (Form S) and the new processes for this tax type on the Tax Portal Online services ( TPOS).
Personal Income Tax (PIT)
Personal Income Tax is levied on income from employment, businesses and property.
Taxes collected through PIT return filing depends on the residence status of person and the relevant income bracket that the person falls under.
Tax return for PIT is filed through business (Form B) and salary and wage earners (Form S).
The amount of income tax payable for a year is determined by multiplying the estimated total annual chargeable employment income by the rate of income tax applicable to the relevant income bracket.
The income tax rates for resident individuals from August 1, 2017 onwards are as follows:
The Income Tax rate for non-resident individuals from 1 January 2013 onwards is 20 per cent.
Unlike resident individuals, there is no tax-free threshold nor multiple rates of tax for non-residents. The PIT structure also includes the Social Responsibility Tax (SRT) and the Environment and Climate Adaptation Levy (ECAL) on employment income.
(Table1) Social Responsibility Tax (SRT) and Environment and Climate Adaptation Levy (ECAL) on Prescribed Income
SRT is a tax imposed on an individual who has a chargeable income exceeding FJ$270,000.00. SRT came into effect from January 1, 2012 and has been part of the PIT structure for the past seven years. ECAL on employment income was introduced on August 1, 2017. The amount of ECAL payable for a year is determined by multiplying the estimated total annual chargeable employment income other than redundancy and lump sum payments, by the rate of ECAL applicable to the relevant income bracket.
Redundancy and lump sum payments are not subject to ECAL. There is no difference between the rate of ECAL applicable to resident and non-resident individuals. The rate of ECAL from August 1, 2017 onwards is 10 per cent of excess over FJ$270,000.01.
Overview of Filing PIT ReturnsSalary and Wage Earners (Form S)
PIT Return- salary and wage earners (Form S) are required to be filed by:
•Individuals deriving income from 2 or more employers during the year.
•Individuals whose employer is not registered for Pay As You Earn (PAYE).
•Fiji residents who are employees of foreign organisations/embassies located in Fiji who are not registered for PAYE.
•Migrating Fiji citizens or departing expatriates whose only source of income is from employment.
•Individuals donating to the Prime Minister’s COVID-19 Relief Fund The Tax Commissioner’s Assessment will still apply for employees whose employer are filing monthly Employer Monthly Summary (EMS) and where employment income is from one employer. However, the Commissioner’s assessment will not be generated if Form S is lodged through the new Taxpayer Online Services (TPOS).
Current Process for Filing PIT
Returns- Salary and Wage Earners (Form S)
Currently PIT Returns- salary and wage earners (Form S) is lodged manually at the FRCS Customer Enquiry Centres, which are then processed by the Tax Officers and assessed by the Assessors. Finally,
a Notice sent by FRCS. of
Assessment
Filing PIT Returns- Salary and Wage Earners (Form S) on TPOS for tax years 2015- 2020
is 1.Log in to FRCS Taxpayer Online
Contact FRCS
You can access TPOS on https:// tpos.frcs.org.fj/taxpayerportal.
For more information and feedback please email us on info@frcs. org.fj.