THE Income Tax Board of Review (ITBOR) was established under the Income Tax Act, Chapter 35, in February this year, formed to serve the interests of companies that are subjected to corporate tax under the Companies Act with the aim of facilitating the administration and operation of taxation in Brunei Darussalam.
The ITBOR is an independent Board comprising a chairperson and qualified members repre-senting industries appointed by the government, to consider and review appeal cases made by the taxpayers against the assessment of Corporate Income Tax made by the Collector of Income Tax (CIT).
The ITBOR introduces a new process of hearing, examining and settlement of objection cases from companies against the CIT assessment. It will create a cost-effective, transparent and fair system of administration of corporate tax.
It is also hoped that the establishment of the ITBOR will expedite the settlement of appeal cases brought forward to the Board.
The corporate tax assessment process in Brunei Darussalam begins when a company files its annual Income Tax Returns to the Revenue Division. The Revenue Division, which reports to the CIT, is the main agency in Brunei responsible for the implementation and administration of corporate income tax. Since the intro-duction of self-assessment using the online tax system (STARS) in 2012, taxpayers are required to submit their Income Tax Returns to the Revenue Division annually on June 30.
Tax Assessment Officers from the Revenue Division, on behalf of the CIT, will assess the returns which would then be issued either a Notice of Assessment (NOA) or a Loss Confirmation (LC). It is the taxpayers’ responsibility, notwithstanding any objection or appeal, to proceed with the payment of Income Tax within 30 days after the NOA has been served.
Taxpayers may object to these assessments and file a Notice of Objection (NOO) to the CIT. The CIT will review the assessment and make a decision to accept or reject the NOO. This cycle may be repeated until the CIT determines that the reassessment is final, upon which a Notice of Refusal to Amend will be issued.
Taxpayers are able to lodge their cases to be reviewed by the Board, within 30 days of the CIT’s issuance of the Notice of Refusal to Amend. The first step is to file the Notice of Petition for Review (Form 1) to the ITBOR, and after this, within 30 days from the filing of the Notice of Petition for Review, file a Petition for Review (Form 2).
These forms are available from the Ministry of Finance’s website at www.mof.gov.bn.
After all the documents have been filed, a pre-trial conference between the taxpayer and the CIT will be scheduled, followed by a hearing with the ITBOR where the Board would then proceed to make their decision regarding their appeal cases.
Companies can present their appeals by writing to the Secretary of Income Tax Board of Review, Income Tax Board of Review office at Level 4, Ministry of Finance Building, Commonwealth Drive, Jalan Kebangsaan BB3910, Brunei Darussalam.
A fee of B$200 is chargeable for each appeal. (Ministry of Finance)
The post Understanding Ministry of Finance’s Income Tax Board of Review appeared first on Borneo Bulletin Online.