Digitalizing tax system imperative for Sri Lanka, top UN official says

The United Nations Assistant Secretary General says the key factor in broadening Sri Lanka’s tax base and increasing the number of taxpayers is to simplify the registration process for taxpayers.

During a brief discussion held with Finance State Minister Shehan Semasinghe this morning (Jan.03), Ms. Kanni Wignaraja, the UN Assistant Secretary General and UNDP Regional Director, highlighted that it is imperative to digitalize the taxpayer registration process to improve voluntary tax compliance.

Ensuring that every person who obtains a Tax Identification Number (TIN) is not liable for income tax will encourage members of the public to expeditiously register to secure a TIN, Ms. Wignaraja continued.

The UN Assistant Secretary General said Sri Lanka should take note of the tax policy reforms followed by Bangladesh, which was once labelled as a country plagued with corruption, to boost its tax revenue. Digital transformation and expansion of the tax system to regional levels helped Bangladesh’s National Revenue Board to become more a productive and efficient institution, she explained.

In a similar vein, the Sri Lankan government is also making efforts to digitalize the tax system by incorporating District Secretariats, State Minister Semasinghe noted.

Further, the lawmaker pointed out that no specific group can be given relief at the moment as the country is in the middle of a rigorous reform process.

Speaking on the debt restructuring process, State Minister Semasinghe said Sri Lanka remains extremely grateful for the assistance provided by global agencies.

The two sides also discussed the ongoing social dialogue on the Value-Added Tax VAT). Attention was also paid to further educating the general public on the new VAT hike, taxpayer registration, and TIN registration, as well as the services and goods exempted from VAT.