AfricaPress-Tanzania: TANZANIANS have been urged to pay taxes as required by the law to enhance economic development and avoid inconveniences that may occur due to non-compliance.
All business people must ensure that they pay taxes on time. This will enable the government to render vital social services, including health and education.
Kagera Regional Manager of the Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA), Mr Adam Ntoga said entreprenuers with sales turnover ranging between 0/- and -4.0m/- per annum were exempted from paying income tax while those with sales turnover ranging between 4.0m/- and 7.5m/- per annum were liable to pay 150,000/- per annum.
Entrepreneurs with sales turnover in brackets are…. 7.5m/- – 11.5m/-(318,000/- p.a.), 11.5m/- -16.0m/- (546,000/- p.a.) and 16.0m/–20.0m/-(862,500/- p.a.).
He noted that tax evasion was a criminal offence, an offender being liable to a maximum fine of 20m/-. A person who discloses such acts could also get a reward equivalent to 3 per cent of the amount.
He advised business persons to contact TRA offices to get Tax Clearance Certificates and Trade Officers to get business licences.
“I urge you to support the government initiatives by educating people on the importance of paying tax to speed up the nation’s development. This will be realised through tax compliance. All business people must ensure that they pay the taxes on time. Customers should ensure that they get receipts for goods they buy from traders by getting genuine Electronic Fiscal Devices,” he said.
He stressed that tax payers, especially the large tax payers, must ensure that they pay the taxes to TRA on time and as required for the country’s better future reiterating the need for tax payers to ensure they develop good relationship with the authority to avoid disorder once they fail to settle down their taxes as required.
Under Section 83 of the Tax Administration Act, 2015 any person who fails to pay any tax on, or before the date on which the tax is payable commits an offence and where the failure is to pay tax in excess of 50 currency points, to a fine not less than 25 currency points and not more than 100 currency points or imprisonment for a term not less than three months and not more than one year, or to both.
