By Sarah NEGEDU
The Federal Capital Territory Internal Revenue Service, FCT-IRS, has put plans in motion to rectify the issues of wrongful tax remittances by individuals and businesses operating in the nation’s capital.
Specifically, the service frowns at the wrongful payment of personal income taxes which are meant to be paid to the FCT-IRS to other states, by remitting such taxes into the Federal Inland Revenue Service.
Acting Executive Chairman of the FCT-IRS, Haruna Abdullahi, raised these concerns while speaking at a workshop organized to ensure proper use of Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System, IPPIS, and the Government Integrated Financial Management Information System, GIFMIS, platforms.
He warned that such errors, if not corrected, will deny the rightful states and the FCT, their genuine remittances.
Abdullahi, stressed that tax remittances were significant pillars of the financial system, which served as a critical revenue source needed for economic development, promotion of wealth redistribution, and contribution to the overall welfare of the society.
His words, “FCT-IRS as a revenue generating agency in the nation’s capital, Abuja must enlighten the people on issues related to tax clearance, considering how important it is at the moment. Without tax clearance an individual will not enjoy certain services at national and sub-national level.
“It is good for individuals to file their taxes in the appropriate places, we have discovered that on the IPPIS most persons come with tax clearance not reflecting the Federal Capital Territory.
“Part of this anomaly lies in another common misconception. It appears that some desk officers believe that the FCT-IRS is not present on the GIFMIS platform. As a result, they automatically remit the taxes due to the FCT-IRS to the Federal Inland Revenue Service, FIRS. I would like to clarify this misconception today: the FCT-IRS is indeed on the GIFMIS platform, and our code is 100419.
“I encourage all desk officers to take note of this and ensure that subsequent tax remittances for the FCT are accurately made to the FCT-IRS, not the FIRS”
The Chairman, added that the FCT-IRS was not in anyway competing with the FIRS, but are rather collaborators in the larger scheme of national development.
He emphasised that the anomalies, which were due to inaccurate data entries on the platforms, distorts financial records and deprives the rightful states of their due resources, Abdullahi lamented: “The resources wrongly allocated in the past could be better utilized to foster growth and development in the FCT, hence benefiting the residents of our great capital”.
On his part, the chairman Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria, CITN, FCT chapter, Dr. Kennedy Iwundu, advised government to comply with the provisions of tax law to avoid lapses.
He explained that, “The provision of the tax law made it that, business names are administered by state Internal Revenue Service, where we are in Abuja, FCT-IRS takes charge. But companies are administered by Federal Internal Revenue Service, representing the Federal Government.
“When MDAs are giving out contract to companies they are obligated to remit the revenue to FIRS, but if the contract is in business name, the withholding tax is to go the FCT-IRS, where the business name is residence.”
The workshop organized in collaboration with the Joint Tax Board and Office of the Accountant General of the Federation, had in attendance account officers from Ministries, Departments and Agencies of government who asked questions on issues affecting the two payment platforms.