Arab News, Thursday, Feb 09, 2023 | Rajab 18, 1444
Integration of zakat, tax bodies with customs to be completed in Q1: ZATCA governor
Saudi Arabia:
The complete merger of the General Authority of
Zakat and Tax with the General Authority of Customs will be completed by the end
of the first quarter of 2023, revealed ZATCA Gov. Suhail Mohammed Abanmi.
While speaking at a panel discussion at the Zakat,
Tax and Customs Conference in Riyadh on Wednesday, Abanmi said that ZATCA faced
so many challenges to integrate these bodies, but it is successfully completing
the process as the authority carried out several studies to understand the
possible hurdles that may come up in the journey.
The integration between Zakat, Tax and Customs
bodies was happening in phases, and the merging process is now in its final
stages.
It was in 2021 that the Saudi cabinet approved the
decision to merge the General Authority of Zakat and Tax with the General
Authority of Customs, to form an umbrella authority named Zakat, Tax and Customs
Authority, in line with the Kingdom’s efforts to restructure government agencies
to speed the implementation of the goals outlined in Vision 2030.
“The decision to integrate tax and customs bodies
was taken in 2021, and it will be completed by the first quarter of this year,”
said Abanmi.
He added: “The integration of tax and customs
bodies is a huge remarkable achievement. We faced so many challenges. But we
successfully overcome those hurdles by conducting a study. The study was well
detailed, and we found solutions for these challenges.”
During the panel discussion, Abanmi also outlined
the benefits of integration and noted that these efforts will mutually benefit
both the customers and the government.
“As customers use the same channel after the
integration of tax and customs, it will increase the efficiency of the
operations and enhance the satisfaction levels of the users. By integrating the
two bodies; tax and customs, we reduced the cost of operational expenses and
capital costs, and this will help the government,” he said.
Abanmi further noted that integrating zakat, tax
and customs bodies will also enhance cybersecurity, and added that it will also
help reduce risks and tax evasion.
Talking about the feasibility study conducted
before taking the merging decision, Abanmi noted: “The decision to integrate tax
and customs bodies under a single umbrella was decided after a study. This study
looked into several international studies and analyzed previous experiences of
integration that happened in UK, Estonia, Portuguese, and South Africa.”