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Talatsao mall vendors to pay tax online
Vendors at the Talatsao Shopping Mall in Vientiane will become the first SME group to make tax payments through banks, as part of the government's efforts to reduce the amount of banknotes in circulation.
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| Mr Sanya Praseuth. |
The Ministry of Finance introduced the new system to the vendors on Friday. In the future, they will make tax payments to the capital treasury through BCEL and the Lao Development Bank instead of to tax officials.
Under the new system, officials will estimate the amount of tax owed by vendors each month. After receiving an invoice, the vendors must then pay the amount owed into the treasury account at either of the two banks by the time stated.
Vendors will find it easier make payments this way because both banks have service units in the shopping mall. Vendors can also use ATMs or go online to make transfers from their bank account to the treasury account.
To prevent vendors either avoiding or delaying tax payments, inspectors will check to see that vendors are making timely payments. Officials will also issue warnings to vendors who are slow to pay their taxes, and fine repeat offenders.
Information Technology Centre Director General, Mr Sanya Praseuth, said that the existing process, under which officials estimate and collect tax from vendors before putting the money into treasury accounts, was not appropriate because it was not in line with the government's policy to decentralise the management of the state budget.
Those officials who are no longer needed for this work will be retrained as tax invoice inspectors, Mr Sanya said.
He pointed out that the new system would also enable the government to check for counterfeit banknotes and, by keeping more banknotes out of circulation, would also help to curb the rising inflation rate.
Mr Sanya also said that the reduced circulation of banknotes would empower the government to boost socio-economic development.
The Ministry of Finance considers the introduction of the new tax payment system at the Talatsao shopping mall to be a pilot project. If it is successful, the ministry will apply it to other commercial centres around the country. A number of large companies are already making tax payments through banks. The ministry has vowed to modernise its methods to ensure it collects all the revenue owed and has sufficient resources to finance the growing costs of national development.
vientiane times
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