$2.813 billion of tax collected for the 2018/2019 financial year by FRCS

The total tax collection for the 2018/2019 financial year by the Fiji Revenue and Customs Service was $2.813 billion.

This has been highlighted by FRCS Chief Executive Officer, Visvanath Das to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Public Accounts.

The 2018/2019 National Budget tax collection forecast was $3.4 billion. This figure was anticipated by the government to provide services to the people.

Das says it took them 85 years to reach the $1 billion revenue mark, 10 years to reach the $2 billion mark and as they are going through the 6th year in their 3rd phase, Fiji Revenue and Customs Service is looking at the $3 billion mark.

The total tax collection for the 2016/2017 financial year was  $2.57 billion while the total collection for 2017/2018 was $2.83 billion.

When questioned by FijiFirst MP, Vijendra Prakash on the reason for the decline in tax collection for the 2018/2019 financial year, Das says global trends are having a direct impact on the economy, the slowdown in the economy and the black economy continues to affect tax collection due to noncompliant taxpayers.

Das also says that revenue is all dependent on economic growth.

SODELPA MP, Aseri Radrodro then asked Das why there was an increase in indirect taxes compared to direct tax contribution as of the year 2018 as he says that is going away from the norm.

Das says Fiji is now internationally aligned with the global trend to shift away from income taxes to consumption-based tax.

This means people get more take-home-pay and taxes are based paid on a user-pay basis.