Tax Administration to Simplify the Process of Obtaining a Tax Compliance Certificate

The Tax Administration Department (TAD) is seeking to simplify the process of obtaining a Tax Compliance Certificate (TCC).
TCCs are required for several transactions in Jamaica, especially for businesses seeking to secure a Government contract valuing more than $250,000.
At a function held recently at the offices of Jamaica Trade and Invest (JTI) in Kingston, Commissioner of the Taxpayer Audit and Assessment Department, Ainsley Powell, said the department is seeking to electronically link all the various agencies involved in the process of generating a TCC.
“We are now looking at how to improve this to prevent persons from going to the National Insurance Scheme (NIS), then the HEART Trust/ NTA, then the National Housing Trust (NHT), and then come to the Inland Revenue (Department),” he explained.
Currently, the service is available to compliant taxpayers, who only need to sign up once at a specified tax office, after which they can apply via email through the Tax Administration’s portal at www.jamaicatax-online.gov.jm .
Once a person applies electronically, the system automatically sends an email to the various agencies – NHT, HEART, NIS. An officer at each agency will then check the compliance status and reply to the Tax Administration system.
However, the service is to be enhanced to allow the Tax Administration’s Integrated Computerised Tax Administration System (ICTAS) to automatically interface with the computer systems available in the other agencies. This would make the service even faster and allow it to be offered to not only compliant taxpayers, but to all applicants.
The Tax Administration is aiming to have the ICTAS in place before the end of the current fiscal year. The move is being made in a bid to simplify the overall process of doing business in Jamaica.
The latest Doing Business Report has ranked Jamaica 63rd out of 181 countries, with regard to the ease of setting up and carrying out business in the country.
The Tax Administration is hoping to improve its rating through the consolidation of the processes involved in obtaining a TCC.