FIRS sets strategies for increased tax collection in 2016

The Executive Chairman,The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) said it had set specific strategies to increase tax collection to drive its proposed targets in 2016. Mr Tunde Fowler, Executive Chairman of the Service, stated this on Wednesday in Abuja. He said that the overall target was to ensure that Valued Added Tax (VAT) and Corporate Income Tax (CIT) became the largest contributors to tax collection in 2016.
Fowler said that in ensuring that VAT and CIT contributed more, the service would also ensure that collection from other taxes were significantly increased.
The chairman said that the strategies to achieve its targets included ensuring a minimum of 90 per cent compliance across all tax types and all taxpayer categories. He said that the service would achieve 90 per cent compliance by increased focus on sector based audits to ensure that all audit backlogs were cleared. Fowler said that the service would ensure maximum possible registration of taxpayers and would ensure the use of technology to block leakages and improve efficiency in collection. He said that the service would strengthen tax administration by appointing new sector heads to drive tax compliance in the identified sectors, to improve performance management.