Prudence N. Barnes, Contributor
THE INLAND Revenue Department has reported collections of some $6.9 million in tax revenue online, since the department established its 'virtual collectorate' Internet tax collection system on December 9, 2004, as part of the state's e-government thrust.
Leighton Beckles, public relations manager at the Inland Revenue Department, said they were very "encouraged" by the performance of the online system, pointing out that it was having a positive impact on revenue collections.
Some 961 transactions were conducted on-line by persons from both locally and overseas, and the Inland Revenue website saw some 3000 hits, Mr. Beckles disclosed.
"It is pretty good," he stated. "What it means is that people are getting the information and that they are comfortable with the technology."
Mr. Beckles said that the Government of Jamaica, through its Tax Administration and Inland Revenue Departments, developed the online system out of a need to provide a convenient and user-friendly environment for the payment of taxes.
"The concept came about out of the need to increase revenues and provide consistent services for Jamaicans at home and abroad," he told Wednesday Business.
CONVENIENT, USER-FRIENDLY ENVIRONMENT
Using a credit card, persons can now pay their property taxes, traffic ticket fines, betting taxes, hotel licence fees, General Consumption Tax and Special Consumption Tax via the Internet from anywhere in the world. They need to log on to the website of the Inland Revenue Department at www.jamaicatax-online.gov.jm or utilise Max Machine Computer Kiosks with Internet access, established at the Constant Spring Collectorate.
The kiosks were established through a collaborative effort with the Ministry of Commerce, Science and Technology; Cable and Wireless; the Bank of Nova Scotia and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), among others, the PR manager disclosed.
"The transaction takes about three to four minutes to be completed, depending on your bandwidth," Mr. Beckles stated.
Emphasising that the system was highly secure and very user-friendly, Mr. Beckles noted that the online system had alleviated the rush at the tax offices at the end of the financial year when the move to file returns was usually heaviest.
In addition, he pointed out, persons from overseas could now have greater confidence that their taxes were being paid, because they could do it themselves.
Mr. Beckles added that the project was being carried out in a number of phases, explaining that the next phase would allow persons to file income tax returns on-line. The system is now undergoing testing, he revealed.
