Evaluating Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Tax Assessment of Self Employed: Case of Selected Tailors and Seamstresses at Kumasi Central Market.
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Date
2008-08-25
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Abstract
A very good look at developing countries, Ghana being no exception, reveals that it will be very difficult for a country to develop, if it keeps on relying heavily on external sources of funding for its developmental projects. The fact also remains that, for a country which is developing and has a low per capital income, majority of its citizens will be self-employed. It therefore follows that; greater proportion of its internally generated funds must come from* the self-employed.
The researcher is of the view that anything humanly possible must be done to sensitize the self-employed, so as to make them self willing to contribute their quota to the internally generated revenue, in the form of taxation. The Internal Revenue Service must also be backed to work effectively and efficiently. The main objectives of the research were to find out whether the way IRS assesses the self employed was fair, and also the difficulties encountered by IRS in their bid to assess the self employed and subsequently collect tax. A sample of one hundred and seventeen comprising tailors and seamstresses out of the total population of four hundred and seventy was used to carry out the study. With the IR S staff, all the eighteen people at the operations department of the Asokwa branch of I R S were used. The instruments used for the collection of the primary date were questionnaires and interviews. The questions were both close and open-ended items.
The result of the study indicated among others that, both Tailors and Seamstresses on one side, and the I R S staff on the other were satisfied with the way the self employed are assessed. The study also revealed some difficulties encountered by the IRS staff at the operations department. Among the difficulties are; logistical problems, example computers,
vehicles for movements, and communication equipments, tax payers resistance, and staffing problem. Recommendations like vigorously sensitizing the self employed as to why they should pay tax and also keep records of their financial transactions were made. Recommendations were also made to equip the I R S with the needed tools like computers, motor vehicles and mobile facilities. For a speedy development of any nation, the self employed can never be sidelined, so prudent measures must be put in place to bring them on board for a smooth take off
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A thesis submitted to the College of Arts and Social Sciences, KNUST School of Business, 2008