FCT-IRS Introduces E-Tax Clearance Certificate to Check Forgery

Olawale Ajimotokan in Abuja

The Federal Capital Territory’s Internal Revenue Service (FCT-IRS) has introduced Electronic Tax Clearance Certificate (E-TCC) to improve service delivery and checkmate activities of fraudsters who could forge such document.

The Acting Executive Chairman of the FCT-IRS), Mr. Haruna Abdullahi, disclosed this yesterday during his engagement with the members of the House Committee on Public Accounts at the National Assembly.

Abdullahi said that the E-TCC would make it difficult for anyone to forge document because of the introduction of QR Code.

He said this effort would help the service not to be short-changed as well as boost revenue for the FCT.

He noted that a tax clearance certificate (TCC) is a document issued by the tax authority to certify that an individual or a business is compliant with the appropriate requirements as stated by law within a stipulated period of time usually for the three preceding years.

According to him, while issuing a tax clearance certificate, due diligence must be carried out to ensure certain conditions were met by the taxpayers and satisfied by tax authority.

He stated that application for TCC must be made and duly endorsed by the taxpayer and annual income declaration Form A and three years income declaration form must also be duly completed and signed by the taxpayer.

The FCT-IRS boss also noted that personal emoluments, which comprised of wages or salaries, including allowances, benefits in kind, gratuities, superannuation or pension schemes and any other income derived solely by reason of employment are declared.

Abdullahi added that income declared must be verified, satisfied and evidences of such income be sited while benefit in kind must also be verified based on section 4 of PITA 2011.

In his remarks, the Chairman House Committee on Public Accounts, Mr. Oluwole Oke, urged the general public and taxpayers to report any violation of the law concerning issuance of TCC to the management of FCT-IRS.