Dear Editor,
I wish to highlight an area of concern as it relates to the recurring difficulties faced by taxpayers due to apparent inefficiencies in the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) filing systems. There are multiple cases where GRA continues to lose track of taxpayers filed returns for various taxes (corporation, property, PAYE and VAT).
These include returns for both companies and individuals with the ‘misplaced’ returns only becoming known as outstanding by the taxpayer when the GRA sends demand letters for said returns or when the taxpayer applies for a compliance only to be informed that the returns are apparently outstanding. Such inefficiencies from the GRA result in unnecessary and unfair stress, delays and costs to the taxpayers when they have faithfully fulfilled their obligations.
There are numerous instances where demand letters are sent for outstanding returns with the GRA claiming those returns as never filed; while the taxpayers have copies of those said returns filed and stamped as received by the GRA. In many cases, the Authority’s staff are apathetic, providing little support to the taxpayer other than a ‘bring in the copies or file again stance’ despite this being as a result of the GRA’s own inability for good record keeping. Taxpayers being told that their returns “cannot be found” or “were not received” is troubling, especially at a time when the GRA has been promoting improvement in its taxpayer services.
That taxpayers are being subjected to repeated requests for returns already filed and with the possibility of penalties not only undermines the public’s confidence in the GRA but also calls into question the record management of such an important organization in Guyana. The GRA and its personnel must recognize that it provides a public service and that taxpayers are its clients. These unnecessary repeated requests, with little help from the Authority, is a cause of frustration for taxpayers and results in delays that have real consequences for individuals and companies alike. Hopefully the GRA’s first response would be to correct this repeating issue soon and not just seek to defend its system.