On Friday, 22nd October, members of the media met with representatives from the Inland Revenue Department (IRD) at the Financial Information Month Road Show sponsored by the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank as part of its annual financial literacy and awareness initiative. Comptroller of the Inland Revenue Department, Mr. Lonnie Hobson, stated that the theme of the IRD is Financial Empowerment Through Education.
With that premise in mind, Mr. Hobson stated that the department wishes “to educate our taxpayers and to empower them to understand what we do here at [the] Inland Revenue [Department]. Sometimes when people hear of the tax department, they tend to have a stand-off fear, but we are customer oriented and we are open and receiving of all our taxpayers. We are here to empower and educate the taxpayers on the services that we have, and also to educate them for voluntary compliance and get them understanding all the services.” As a contribution to the Financial Information Month, Mr. Hobson further explained that the department had put together packets of information regarding the different services that the IRD makes available to taxpayers. A sample of the information packets was shared with media persons at the Road Show.
In addition to preparing packets of information for taxpayers on the services that are being offered at the IRD, Ms. Keischa Brooks, Assistant Comptroller Taxpayer Services, said that their “main emphasis [at this time] will be on the soon to be implemented Goods and Services Tax (GST) on July 1st 2022. In our packets we are sharing information as to why GST, and how to go about registering for GST.” Mr. Hobson went on to explain the significance of the GST Logo: “Growing Sustainably Together” and how it ties all Anguillian taxpayers together. He said, “As a nation, all of us are in this together. We have persons who are unemployed so these [GST] will help to put safety nets in place; elderly persons might need help with healthcare; we have construction of our infrastructure like roads, schools, clinics and hospitals which we have to keep up; and, in the future, the Goods and Services Taxes will help to fill in the gaps by making sure moneys are placed in these things”.
Continuing, Ms. Brooks added that in an effort to improve customer services at IRD, “the IRD website was launched, last month, but now we are launching our online portal for the ease of convenience to go about filing your taxes, checking your accounts, making sure all your accounts are up to date, [getting] reminders as to when you need to meet your obligations, [as well as providing] some tidbits on what you need to know, and how to go about accessing your accounts.” Ms. Brooks noted that, while most of their forms are available as downloads on the IRD website, they are now in the process of transitioning some of those downloadable [PDF] forms to e-fillable [electronic] forms that could be completed and submitted online. Ms. Brooks implored persons to stay current with paying their bills, even during these trying times. She explained that payment plans are available for persons who might be in arrears or have difficulty meeting their tax obligations. She stated: “If persons are in arrears with their property tax, they can come in and speak with collection officers to sort out a more suitable payment plan based on the amount outstanding. We are compassionate and will work with you; just stay with making your payments on a monthly basis so you don’t put yourselves in further arrears or become delinquent. We understand that these are trying times, but we just want persons to meet their obligations.”
In response to a question posed by DJ Hammer, of Klass Radio 92.9 FM, regarding the function and purpose of the IRD in relationship to government, Mr. Hobson stated that “we are here responsible for collecting the revenue from the different taxes. We also do driver licences, vehicle registrations, issuance of business licences and we are getting ready to implement the GST,” to list a few. The cover brochure in the information packet states: “The Inland Revenue Department is committed towards collecting taxes with Fairness, Efficiency and Integrity.”
With regard to the im
pact of COVID-19 on the IRD, Mr. Hobson acknowledged the department’s “need to change with the times.” He indicated that, “coming out of this [COVID-19] pandemic, they are witnessing longer than usual lines of persons coming out to the offices – and explained that the drive thru option is available for all services 8:00-1:30 Monday-Friday.” He also noted that, as a result of the pandemic, “we have rolled out our online portal and made many of our services available online – so that persons can stay in the comfort of their homes and offices and transact, and carry out, those services that we offer. [Persons will be] “able to pay for those services online as well. We are partnering with ECCB and, in the future, when they are ready to roll out the d-cash, we will have that digital currency availability there as well.” Mr. Hobson further extended “Thank You” to the many staff members who stepped up to take on different roles, within the department, to lessen the impact of COVID on customers coming to the department for services. He also reminded persons that, as part of the Covid Relief, there is an automatic 5% reduction on all accounts, and that senior citizens, especially, should be aware of the automatic exemption on property taxes for those age 65 and older.
Remarks made by Mr. Lonnie Hobson, Comptroller Inland Revenue Department, and Ms. Keischa Brooks, Assistant Comptroller Taxpayer Services, as well as printed information about the different services offered at the IRD as outlined in their displayed brochures, were made available to the media as part of the Financial Information Month 2021 messaging campaign to educate Anguillian taxpayers.
