VAT workshop hosted in Region 2

The Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) on Thursday hosted a workshop on Value-Added Tax (VAT) for Region Two residents to inform them of the penalties attached to filing late returns.

In a press release, the GRA said Commissioner at the VAT and Excise Tax Department Hema Khan and a team of officials discussed issues such as the importance of filing returns and the illegal practice of charging VAT on zero-rated items. Business representatives were also given a step-by-step demonstration on how to file returns. The GRA said the group was also informed of the penalties attached to filing late or not filing returns; $1000 per day or part of a day that the returns remain outstanding or an amount equal to ten per cent of the tax payable for the period to which the return relates, whichever is greater.

Khan said the workshop will encourage businesses to comply with the regulations and it will help them to meet the February 21 deadline for filing the first returns of the year. She said instead of mailing a single return form to VAT payers, the department will now send out two forms at a time so that businesses will have one month’s form in advance. The returns can be submitted by post or it can be hand-delivered to the nearest GRA office.

More than sixty persons attended the workshop which was hosted at the Arabian Hotel, Essequibo. Questions relating to VAT were also dealt with during a live, call-in programme hosted on RCA Channel 8.