A tax consultant, Eric Amponsah Boateng has outlined four key taxes he wants the government to scrap in its first budget.
They include the 5% VAT on real estate, import levy, fiscal stabilization levy and the 17.5% VAT on financial services.
Speaking ahead of the presentation by Finance Minister Ken Ofori Atta this morning, Mr. Amponsah Boateng said the continuous imposition of the taxes will have dire consequences on economic performance.
“I think that all of those ones will have to go because at the end of the day, we expect that the nation should be able to grow. This could be achieved through productivity. In Ghana too most of the companies rely on imported raw materials,” he asserted on the Citi Breakfast Show Thursday morning.
Some have argued that the scrapping of the taxes is likely to affect government’s revenue for the period under review.
But the tax consultant believes government should rake in more revenue if it initiates measures to streamline the numerous tax relief policies.
According to him, too many taxes have rather contributed to the high non compliance and defaulting rate.
For instance, Eric Amponsah Boateng believes enforcing the implementation of laws that compel top management staff in public and private sectors to file their tax returns, should reduce the losses.
He has also urged the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) to intensify its mechanisms to ensure compliance especially concerning Pay as You Earn and some withholding taxes in the formal sector.
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By: Pius Amihere Eduku/citibusinessnews.com/Ghana
