• Immaterial of whether personal income tax eligible or not, regulations under existing law gazetted due to submission of incomplete info & delays in same

The recent gazette notification stipulating that various institutions, such as financial institutions including banks, should provide details about individuals’ assets to the Inland Revenue Department (IRD) applies to all citizens, not only personal income taxpayers, according to the IRD.

Speaking to The Daily Morning, an officer attached to the IRD’s media committee explained that the said gazette was issued in accordance with the existing law, in order to streamline the pertinent process: “Even before the issuance of the gazette notification, the relevant institutions had been informed about the sharing of information. Since those activities were not taking place properly as per the Act’s provisions (a reference to the Inland Revenue Act as amended), the gazette was issued to inform that that information be provided quarterly. In this process, there is no categorisation as personal income taxpayers or those who don’t pay personal income tax.”

She explained that the relevant institutions sending incomplete information and delays in the process are among the reasons that prompted steps to streamline the process.

Last week, President and Finance, Economic Stabilisation and National Policies Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe issued an extraordinary gazette notification stipulating that several institutions that are in possession of information about individuals’ assets should submit that information to the IRD with effect from 1 July. As per the gazette notification, this applies to both movable and immovable properties, and information about them should be shared on a quarterly basis. The parties responsible for providing the said information include the Registrar General of the Registrar General’s Department, the Registrar General of Companies of the Department of the Registrar of Companies, the Commissioner General of Motor Traffic of the Department of Motor Traffic, officers of any Government institution in charge of granting contracts for the supply of goods, works, or consulting and non-consulting services, any financial institution including banks and non-banking financial institutions regulated by the Central Bank, and the Chairperson of the Colombo Stock Exchange.