Broadening Tax Net - 1,090,338 Issued With Tin ... As GRA Captures Potential Taxpayers

By Claude Nyarko Adams

A total of 1,090,338 taxpayers have so far been issued with their Tax Identification Numbers (TIN) by the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) since the law came into force in 2016, Emmanuel Kofi Nti, Commissioner-General of GRA has stated.

Although he fell short of disclosing the targeted number of people to be registered, he said the exercise would cover every individual who makes a living in the country including Senior High School (SHS) leavers who were yet to enter the job market.

The TIN is an 11-digit unique number, which is backed by the Revenue Administration Act (RAA), 2016, Act 915, given to identified taxpayers and would enable the Ghana Revenue Authority credit the taxpayer whenever tax is paid.

He said other taxpayers who were yet to register would not have access to vital services including passport and driving licence acquisition, land registration and transacting financial businesses with banks and state agencies among other services.

Addressing a press conference in Accra yesterday, Mr Nti, said the law provides that essential service providers in the country deal and transact business with taxpayers who have the TIN.

"The GRA, Controller and Accountant General's Department, Registrar General's Department, Lands Commission, Immigration Service, Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority, courts, banks, Ministries, Departments and Agencies, Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies, government, sub-divisions of government and public institutions, banks, insurance companies and other financial institutions, manufacturing companies among others were required to deal with only people with a TIN. If you don't have one, you cannot have access to essential services from these organisations," he added.

The Commissioner-General noted that "as it stands now and beginning this month, people who do not have the TIN would be unable to clear goods, register land documents, open a bank account, file a case at the courts, obtain a passport, obtain tax clearance, bid for contracts from government agencies, register company, conduct business with state institutions, obtain payments for contract done for government."

The TIN, Mr Nti said would broaden the tax net to capture all potential taxpayers and the revenue administration the ability to monitor all transactions entered into by taxpayers.

He said the GRA has held discussions with the concerned institutions in the implementation of the law to modify their forms to include a field for the provision of TIN and support smooth operation of the policy.

The registration, he said was still ongoing at the various offices of the GRA and comes at no cost to the taxpayer.

He urged the public to immediately take steps to register and report any staff of GRA who demands for cash from taxpayers before registering them.

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