FRCS Surpasses 2021-2022 Annual Revenue Target
The Fiji Revenue and Customs Service (FRCS) has collected net revenue of $1,692.6m for the 2021-2022 fiscal year, surpassing the forecast by $11.7m or 0.7%. The forecast has been achieved despite an upward revision in the 2021-2022 Revised Budget by $83m or 5.2%.
According to the FRCS CEO Mark Dixon, compared to the 2020-2021 fiscal year, overall net collections have shown a remarkable growth by $279.6m or 19.8%.
“We ended the month of July on a very high note, recording a total collection of $186.6m which is above the forecast by $6.4m or 3.5%. The July 2022 collections have shown spectacular growth in comparison to July 2021 collections with an increase in revenue by $71.9m or
62.6%,” he said.
Mr. Dixon said that the 2021-2022 revenue collection started relatively slow with August 2021 recording one of the lowest collections of $84.4m since the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.
However, he said that the revenue
collection increased in the later months of 2021-2022 with various initiatives undertaken by the Fijian Government such as providing financial support to businesses, injecting cash into the economy through unemployment assistance schemes, re- opening the international borders and other budgetary support.
‘The monthly average net revenue collections in the first 6 months of the year was $130m which later increased to $150m in the second half of the year.
“The average monthly collection in the last quarter stood at $176.1m. The strong revenue collections in the recent months can be attributed to the recovery of our businesses, the rebound of the tourism sector and increased confidence shown by our consumers. Consumption taxes such as Domestic VAT, Import VAT, Fiscal Duty, Domestic Excise have all been contributing to the positive revenue outcome,” Mr Dixon said.
Despite the period of recovery and slow revenue collection in the earlier months of the fiscal year, FRCS continued to release refunds promptly to assist businesses with their cash flows. $192.8m has been released in VAT refunds for the fiscal year, exceeding the forecast by $2.3m. selita.bolanavanua@fijisun.