BASSETERRE, St. Kitts –THE month of June ended with a basic training course organized for the staff at the Inland Revenue and Customs and Excise Departments, as both government divisions prepare for the November 2010 implementation of a Value Added Tax.
The five-day course, organized by the Tax Reform Unit in the Inland Revenue Department, was designed to educate the staff on all areas of VAT. According to coordinator of the training and Senior Tax Inspector in the VAT Unit Velda Irish, the training course was fast but informative, as it was necessary for all the staff to have a genuine understanding of all VAT-related issues.
About 20 staff members underwent this training critical in the preparation phase of the VAT.
Training began last Wednesday (June 23) with an orientation for the new comers, breaking them into the practices of the civil service, Customs and Excise Department and to the Inland Revenue Department. This was followed by an introduction to VAT: what it is, how it works and why it is being applied in the Federation.
Day three continued with a concentration on registration and supplies, zero rating exemptions, paying and charging VAT and refunds for businesses. Areas of invoicing and record-keeping, the audit process and legislation and penalties were also brought into focus.
“Because Customs is also a partner in administering the VAT, we touched on issues relating to Customs and VAT. We looked at the transition period because we know persons are going to be concerned about transitioning from the current system to a VAT system. We also did post-implementation,” Irish told the trainees.
Head of the Tax Reform Unit Edward Gift congratulated the staff on their successful completion of the course, challenging them that “to whom much is given, much is expected”. He stressed that the education is just starting and must cultivate a “core competency” in the area of VAT implementation.
“The purpose of the course was to build a core competency: a specific behaviour whereby a professional applies knowledge, skills and professional values in a work environment. This behaviour can be defined, demonstrated, observed and assessed. Part of our role at the Inland Revenue Department is that we are going to ensure our employees are provided with the core competencies so that they could adequately perform their jobs,” Gift said in delivering remarks at yesterday’s (Jun. 29) closing ceremony.
Each trainee received a certificate upon completion of the course, and the energy generated by the eager team of young professionals has been called in for high praises by Comptroller of Inland Revenue Beverly Williams. She said the team’s optimism and fervour are a good sign that the challenges ahead can be appropriately addressed.
“It is well known that the road of the tax collector is rocky at best. However, to institute a new and revolutionary system of tax collection will generate a new set of challenges. Change and the natural tendency to resist, it will confront us.... Yet, there is enthusiasm and this signals confidence in our staff that the tasks are achievable and they know what to do,” Williams concluded.
She urged the trainees to maintain their present energy and enthusiasm to be pleasant and productive in the workplace.
The training comes one day before the first reading of the VAT Bill in the Parliament and will be followed by training in Computerized Accounting Skills, which is expected to kick off shortly.
