Sept 04, 2008 (LBO)- Sri Lanka is set to bring in a new law to collect taxes going back more than half a century from individuals, companies and corporations, a government official said.
The new law which has already been drafted will make it easier for authorities to collect back taxes and lay down procedures to do so.
A committee will also be set up under the direction of the president, to examine whether the concerned individuals are alive, and whether the companies concerned are still in operation and find ways to go forward in each case, the official said.
The proposal has already been approved by the cabinet of ministers and the draft law is with the island's Attorney General, who is examining its compliance with the constitution, the official said.
Sri Lanka's Inland Revenue Department was set up in 1933, when the island was still under the British, and income tax was started in 1932, according to the website of the department.
It was started by amalgamating stamp and estate duty collection offices.
In Sri Lanka state corporations make huge losses because they are used for political purposes and are bailed out with taxes collected from private citizens and corporations or with printed money.
Sri Lanka's politicians have also displayed a marked reluctance to raise value added taxes even by a few percentage points, but have instead laid the grounds for very high inflation.
Due to money printed to fill budget deficits Sri Lanka has had high inflation and balance of payments crises since 1950 when a central bank with money printing powers was started.
In Sri Lanka, state workers, ministers and parliamentarians get tax free salaries and pensions, while income taxes are paid by private citizens and companies. Only a few state corporations make profits.
හොඳ, දැන්වීම්-රහිත (ad-free) ආයුර්වේද ඇප් එකක් සොයා ගැනීමට නොහැකි වූ නිසා, මමම එකක් නිර්මාණය කළා
ලංකාවේ හොඳම උපකාරක පන්ති සහ ගුරුවරුන් එකම තැනකින් - TopTuition.lk
Colombo RidhMathraa ’26 🎶✨
