The Enugu State Internal Revenue Service has appealed to individuals, institutions and other corporate tax payers in the state to continue to be patriotic and cooperate with the board in its renewed efforts to actualize the Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) target of N30 billion to fund the 2018 budget proposal, which is presently in the State House of Assembly for approval, by fulfilling their tax obligations to the state.
The board Chairman, Mr. Emeka Odo, appreciated tax payers, agents, institutions and other stakeholders in the tax industry for their support to the state government in discharging their tax obligations in 2017.
Mr. Odo noted that the state’s IGR improved “tremendously” in 2016 and 2017 having generated about N14 billion and over 20 billion, respectively, from various taxes and non-tax revenues.
The chairman attributed the significant increase in the IGR to the far reaching reforms initiated by Gov. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi’s administration, which he said were “carefully and systematically” implemented by the state’s Internal Revenue Service through blockage of revenue leakages and deployment of an Integrated Tax Management System for efficient and easy tax payment, among others.
He said the board has mapped out strategies on how to meet the target, but noted that it is only when tax payers and corporate bodies fulfill their tax obligations that the set target in 2018 will be fully actualized.
“The 2018 tax year has begun in earnest. We are therefore, reminding all tax payers and tax agents to file their returns of income with identifiable addresses, containing total amount of income from all sources and relevant information on the tax payers, within thirty (30) days from 1stJanuary of the year of the assessment of Enugu State Internal Revenue Service. This is in accordance with Sec. 41 of Personal Income Tax Act 2011 as amended.
“It is also important to note that from the 1stquarter of the year 2018, the State Internal Revenue Service will start sending our Consultants and Auditors to institutions and agencies to carry out back duty audit, additional assessment and investigation for the previous years in accordance with Sec. 55 of Personal Income Tax Act (PITA) 2011 as amended”, Mr. Odo stated.
He also commended the people of the state for voluntary tax payment in 2017, which enabled the government to deliver on its 4-point agenda, and pointed out that in spite of the performance of the board, “the state government is still owed over twenty billion naira in unpaid taxes by various individuals, corporations and institutions”.
