SRC urges DAs to encourage informal businesses to register   |11 July 2022

Mrs Herminie addressing the workshop participants (Photo: Salome Abel)

As part as its awareness and education activities, the Seychelles Revenue Commission conducted its second awareness workshop on tax and customs obligations for the year 2022.

This was done with the district administrators (DAs) in Seychelles through the Ministry of Local Government to share the message in regard to the obligation of the informal businesses in the community that are receiving an income but have not yet registered to come forward and do so.

The half-day workshop was held last week at the STC conference hall. In attendance were representatives from Enterprise Seychelles Agency (Esa), Seychelles Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI), the DAs from Mahé and Praslin and Seychelles Revenue Commission (SRC) officers.

The aim of the workshop was to educate and equip the DAs in Seychelles with the right information that they can use to send out to the community.

The workshop also gave the DAs the opportunity to gather more knowledge about the services and procedures of SRC in addition to businesses that are not registered yet with SRC.

In her opening remarks the Commissioner General of the SRC, Veronique Herminie said she was happy to have had the involvement and participation of the DAs and through this workshop they can be better informed and able to assist the SRC department to ensure that the community can comply with the law and meet their most pressing tax and customs obligations.

She informed the participants that the presentation has been tailored to cover the specific issues and processes that SRC felt are important for them to know and understand.

Mrs Herminie encouraged the DAs to ask as many questions as possible to ensure at the end of the workshop they all have a better understanding.

The director for Taxpayer’s Education and Service Delivery at SRC, Sheryl Barra, said it is important for people in the community to understand the importance of registering and paying tax for their business that is generating a certain revenue.

SRC is aware of the informal businesses that are operating and have not yet registered with SRC. For example, the ones we see on social media selling items such as flowers, fruits and vegetables.

It is important to note that even if you are not entitled to pay tax depending on which level you are on, it is still important to register your business. Through registration, it enables SRC to compile all the statistics which are used not only by SRC but also other sectors in government which uses this information for their analysis for future decision in terms of the economy.

Ms Barra said through this workshop SRC will be working in conjunction with the DAs where the next phase will be meeting with them in their respective district through a door to door activities to identify these businesses and encourage them to come forward to register their business.

On her part the director general for Community Affairs, Denise Clarisse, said the Local Government and her department that liaise directly with the district administrators welcome this initiative and feel it is going in a positive direction.

“It is part of what we are advocating, having a good working relation with the different department in the ministries and agencies where the information given to us can be brought closer to the community. At the end of the day, it is in the community where all the messages relating to the public services need to be shared. Following this workshop, I strongly believe the DAs will have a better understanding of the roles, mandate and procedures of registering a business and paying taxes especially when it comes to the informal businesses. This will permit the DAs to encourage and guide the individual within the community who are engaged or want to engage in a business, see the benefits, the necessity to register,” said Ms Clarisse.

To note the first awareness workshop was done with the tax payers and accounting officers.

SRC aims to continue these educational workshops throughout the year.

Vanessa Lucas