Africa-Press – Tanzania. THE Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) has reminded traders on border areas who import various goods in the country to ensure that they keep vital documents to avoid various inconveniences and enable TRA to make tax assessment.
Manager for Taxpayers’ Education from the Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) headquarters, Ms Rose Mahendeka made the appeal yesterday while addressing traders who attended a one-day sensitisation seminar held in Bukoba Municipal Council.
Equally, she urged business people with a turnover amounting over 14m/- per year to ensure that they use Electronic Fiscal Devices (EFDs), including issuing receipts for all goods sold in their shops.
“Some traders knowingly or through ignorance neglect to obtain necessary documents when they import various goods. This results in unnecessary inconveniences when officers from the TRA assess tax to be paid for the goods,” she said.
Ms Mahendeka emphasized on the importance of issuing EFDs receipts for traders with annual turnover of over 14m/-, warning that neglecting to do so is an offence punishable with a fine ranging between 3m/– 4.5m/-.
She elaborated that while assessing VAT the law does not consider the capital of the business, instead the tax is pegged on the turnover. Petty traders were being issued with Identity Cards (IDs) after paying a mere 20,000/- annual fee.
She appealed to tax payers to utilise TRA offices in their respective areas for clarification on any matters related to paying tax. She directed TRA Regional Manager, Mr Adam Ntoga to convene a seminar to educate traders on the importance of paying VAT. Bukoba Municipal Director Mr Maurice Limbe, on the other hand, explained that paying tax is mandatory adding that the Council is charging service levy.
He explained that the Municipal Council is implementing various strategic projects including the construction of a new bus stand at Kyakailabwa, some 3kms away from Bukoba town. He said the government set aside about 5bn/- for implementing the project during the 2021/2022 fiscal year.
Other projects earmarked for implementation include the construction of new business stalls at the Bukoba central market, Kashai and Nyakanyasi and the upgrading a 7-km road joining Anyama, Kahororo and Buhembe Wards to tarmac level.
According to Mr Limbe, Bukoba Municipal Council had a population of about 230,000 people basing on the projections from the 2012 Population and Housing Census.
Kagera TRA Regional Manager, Mr Adam Ntoga appealed to business people to take advantage on the utilization of Electronic Fiscal Machines (EFDs) to increase their business volume.
He allayed fears noting that the advantage of using EFDs enables a business person to keep proper records of his/her business which in turn enables TRA to make correct tax assessment.
“EFDs enable a business person to keep correct business records and this in turn enables TRA to make correct tax assessment. The records can also enable him/her to get loans from financial institutions,” he said.
However, he warned that it was an offence for a person with business annual turnover amounting 14m/- to avoid using EFDs, adding that such offender was punishable to a fine ranging between 3m/- – 4.5m/-, or imprisonment of up to three years or both. “Similar punishment also applies to business people who tamper with EFDs, he said.
He listed other offences to include operating a business without EFDs, a customer neglecting to collect a receipt, failure to submit tax returns to TRA and failure to inform TRA when the EFD was out of order.
Mr Ntoga reminded business people that EFDs are on great importance because they enable the government to collect right taxes, which in turn are used to render services to all Tanzanians.
