The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Pay As You Earn (PAYE)

  • KDIRS, ABU Zaria to settle N6bn tax suit out of court

    A Tax Tribunal sitting in Kaduna on Thursday granted a request by the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, to settle the 4-year long case of non-remittance of Pay-As-You-Earn (PAYE) tax, amounting to N6 billion out of court.

    The Kaduna State Board of Internal Revenue had on January 16, 2014 instituted a case against the ABU for failure to remit the PAYE tax from 2007 to 2012.

    Counsel to the revenue service, Mr Francis Kozah, prayed the tribunal, chaired by Umar Adamu, to ask the institution to pay all outstanding arrears, including interest and penalty as stated by law.

    Kozah, however, told the tribunal that ABU had earlier requested for out-of-court settlement and that the board had agreed to hear them.

    He said that the sitting was scheduled for the first week of December.

    He also informed the tribunal of the change of nomenclature from Kaduna State Board of Internal Revenue to Kaduna State Internal Revenue Service (KDIRS).

    This followed the passage of the Kaduna State Tax Codification and consolidation Law in 2016.

    Counsel to ABU, Mr M Garba, requested that the case be adjourned for four weeks to allow the parties sit and resolve the dispute.

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    Responding, the tribunal chairman regretted that the case had been on hold since January 2014 due to the non-constitution of the tribunal.

    Adamu said that if the parties failed to settle issue, the tribunal would take a decision to proceed to hear the matter.

    He then, adjourned the case to the second week of January 2019, adding that the parties would be notified of the substantive date in due course.

    Similarly, the tribunal also adjourned the case between KDIRS and Kaduna Polytechnic to December 12, over the institution’s non-remittance of PAYE to the tune of N3.4 billion to KDIRS.

    The amount was the cumulation of non-remittance of PAYE to the Kaduna State Government from 2007 to 2012.

    Counsel to Kaduna Polytechnic, Mr Andrew Nwako, appealed to the tribunal to give both parties two weeks to settle the issue out of court.

    Kozah, who represented KDIRS did not object and the chairman of the tribunal granted the request.

  • Plateau generated N3.09bn IGR in Q1

    The Plateau Government on Tuesday declared N3.09 billion Internally Generated Revenue ( IGR ) in the first quarter of 2018.

    Mr Dashe Arlat, the Chairman, Plateau State Internal Revenue Service ( PSIRS ), made this known in an interview with the newsmen in Jos.

    Arlat said that revenue collected during the period was the highest ever in the history of the service.

    “Looking back at what ( N2.5 billion ) we generated during the same period under review in 2017, we have an increase of about N600 million this year, ’’ he said.

    Arlat described the collection as very huge and encouraging and attributed the development to the renewed vigour of Ministries Departments and Agencies ( MDAs ) and staff of PSIRS in the New Year.

    According to him, the MDAs and PSRIS have been holding series of workshops and stakeholders meetings toward better and workable means of improving the revenue collection of the state.

    He said that the feat was achieved due to tremendous improvements in collection of the Pay As You Earn ( PAYE ) and levies and charges by the MDAs and the PSIRS.

    The chairman gave the monthly analysis showing January as having the highest collection of N1.27 billion, February N828.65 million and March N997.22 million.

    “At the beginning of the year, we set a target of nothing less than a N1 billion as our monthly Internally Generated Revenue ( IGR ) toward strengthening and improving government’s provision of basic social amenities to the citizens of the state.

    “As it is now, with what we have so far generated, we have gotten there and we hope to improve on it as we move on in the year,’’ Arlat said.

    He said that the staff of the ministry of tourism had been going out to ensure that all hotels, events centres, drinking spots and viewing centres, among others, were duly captured and registered for payment of taxes and levies.

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    Arlat said that all other MDAs would soon follow suit, especially the ministry of lands and physical planning.

    He said that the ministry was expected to start collection of ground rents, having almost concluded the numbering of houses within the Jos-Bukuru metropolis.

    The PSIRS boss commended members of staff for their dedication to duty and for working under some difficult conditions.

    He said that the response from the tax payers in the state had been very encouraging and appealed to them to continue with that display of patriotism.

    Arlat said that once tax payers fulfilled their civic responsibilities to the government, the government would equally reciprocate by providing the needed social amenities to the citizens as dividends of democracy.

    NAN

  • Nasarawa Internal Revenue Service will generate N15b in 2018

    Ahmed Yakubu, the Chairman of Nasarawa Internal Revenue Service, has expressed optimism that the board will generate N15 billion this year to enhance the revenue profile of the state.

    Yakuba expressed the zeal on Wednesday when he paid a courtesy visit to the North Central Zonal headquarters of the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria ( FRCN ) in Lafia.

    According to him, Gov. Umaru Al-Makura during the inauguration of the service, set an annual target of N12 billion for it.

    “But we have decided to review the target upward to N15 billion annually in order to boost the revenue profile of the state,’’ he said.

    He said the agency would to take advantage of the state’s proximity to the Federal Capital Territory ( FCT ), to maximally harness the revenue sources of the state.

    He added that the revenue service would focus more on four areas: Stamp Duties, Pay as You Earn ( PAYE ), Withholding Taxes and Land Fee.

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    Yakubu promised that the internal revenue service would work in synergy with the state task force on land which was constituted in 2017, to generate more revenue for the state.

    The chairman added that the agency would also collaborate with security agencies to enforce the existing revenue laws of the state.

    He appealed to media organisations in the state to support the agency through appropriate sensitisation of the residents on the need fulfill their financial obligations to the state.

    Responding, Sylvasnus Namang, Director, FRCN, North Central Zone, gave the assurance that the station would support the service to achieve the set target.

    Namang added that FRCN would introduce quality programmes and carry news on the activities of the service as a way of supporting the it to achieve the set goal.

    NAN

  • Oyo to prosecute tax defaulters

    Oyo to prosecute tax defaulters

    The Oyo State Internal Revenue Service (OYIRS), has vow to commence the prosecution of tax evaders and offenders in the state from Wednesday, August 17, 2016.

    The Special Adviser of the Board for Oyo State‎ Internal Revenue Services, Biyi Oloko who was accompanied by the Commissioner for Information, Culture and Tourism, Toye Arulogun disclosed this on Thursday while addressing journalist in Ibadan.

    Oloko said:” The Oyo State Internal Revenue Service has now put in place a data bank on tax defaulters and is now embarking on an enforcement and prosecution drive that will take full advantage of the provisions of the tax laws to apprehend and prosecute tax defaulters. The Oyo State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice will through a Rapid Tax Prosecution Process commence prosecution of tax defaulters in Oyo State without further notice.

    “The Oyo State government through the Oyo State Internal Revenue Service (OYIRS), has put all the necessary machineries in place to ensure the enforcement of the tax laws and wishes to advise all erring taxpayers to comply forthwith and ensure immediate payment of any outstanding taxes, fines and levies. The full weight of the law will be brought to bear on taxable persons who fail to comply.”

    According to him, the government has set up a joint enforcement team with the local government in order to ensure a harmonised approach to the enforcement of the tax laws of both the State and local government.

    Also, in order to block leakage in revenue collection, Oloko disclosed that the state government has adopted electronic collection of revenues ( POS) at all revenue points in the state.

    He urged all tax payers not to make any cash payments to any individual other than directly into the designated revenue accounts in any of the collecting banks.

    He reiterated that the state will continue to take full advantage of the provisions of the law to prosecute recalcitrant corporate organisations and individuals, stressing that all tax evaders and offenders, upon prosecution may be fined or imprisoned.

    He said:”‎ the administration of His Excellency, Senator Abiola Ajimobi, wishes to state that without revenue, all of those things that facilitate the progress, advancement and development of Oyo State will not be realised, for example, infrastructural developments like roads to ensure access to business sites, if the people of Oyo State do not have all the services that government is compelled to offer such as security, education and healthcare etc. then we cannot make progress and develop collectively.

    Oloko explained that OYIRS has over the past months, embarked on various advocacy and enlightenment programmes, for various stakeholder groups and took them through the essence of paying their taxes as at when due.

    “OYIRS has met with NURTW, Informal Sector associations including markets, mechanics, and artisans. We have also met with MAN, Organised Private Sector, professional bodies such as lawyers,  accountants  and surveyors.‎ We also wish to add that the tax types are as follows:

    Pay As You Earn (PAYE), DIRECT TAXATION, Withholding taxes for individuals, Capital Gains Tax for individuals, Stamp duties on instruments executed by individuals, Road tax, Business Premises Registration, Development lev for individuals‎, Right of Occupancy fees on lands owned by State Government, Land Use Charges” he said

    He thanked ‎the people of th state who have continually supported the administration of Governor Abiola Ajimobi through voluntary and prompt payment of their taxes.