Mon, 11 Dec 2017 13:44:49 +0000
By MAILESI BANDA
THE Zambia Revenue Authority will in January 2018 start consumer education to teach the general public on the need to demand a receipt from all business transactions.
The authority’s corporate and communication manager, Topsy Sikalinda said this was part of expanding the national tax bracket adding that they hoped to also capture the informal sector by appointing agents to collect the base tax on behalf of the authority.
Speaking in an interview with the Daily Nation, he said they would have a robust education campaign in the coming year in response to their theme which is “Rewarding voluntary tax compliance, while punishing noncompliance maximally”.
Mr. Sikalinda further said the fiscal devices would be able to oblige business owners to pay their taxes as the main reason the devices are being introduced is to ensure that the authority has up to date information on the transactions being carried out in their respective shops.
“The electronic fiscal devices that will be put in the different trading places will not only help ZRA collect taxes but will enhance compliance from the traders in the sense that it will be easy for them to compile their returns,” he said.
He announced that effective January ZRA would introduce electronic fiscal devices in all the business premises and as part of the pilot programme they had so far procured 2000 devices.
He explained that the devices would be linked to the system at the head office in Lusaka to be able to track noncompliance.
