PAYE tax base increases by leaps and bounds

The Pay as You Earn (PAYE) tax registrations have increased from 41,636 in 2022 to 242,679 in 2023, Commissioner of the Department of Inland Revenue A. M. Nafeer said during a press conference at the Presidential Media Centre (PMC) on Thursday (28).

Nafeer said that in 2022, 73,444 companies were registered with them, and the number had grown to 81,909 by the end of November 2023.The number of people registered with the Department of Inland Revenue had risen from 204,467 in 2022 to 500,196 by the end of November this year.

Joint ventures had increased from 13,776 in 2022 to 15,579 in 2023, he said.VAT registrations had risen from 10,604 in 2022 to 13,546 in 2023, Nafeer said.The revenue of the Inland Revenue Department, which was Rs 1,025 billion in 2019, decreased to Rs 500 billion in 2020.

However, the revenue had increased to Rs 1,500 billion due to the widening of the tax base and the amendment of tax rates.Nafeer said that, form January 2024, all individuals, above the age of 18, will have obtain a Tax Identification Number (TIN) from the Inland Revenue Department.

He said that obtaining the registration number and opening tax files were different things.Obtaining a TIN Number was mandatory for everyone with a national identity card number, he said.Opening a file for income tax payment is necessary only if individuals had sufficient income to be liable for taxation.