Accra, Sept. 24, GNA – The Ghana Revenue
Authority (GRA) is to undertake a nationwide full enforcement and compliance
exercise on the excise tax stamp, beginning next week.
Mr Emmanuel Kofi Nti, the Commissioner-General
of GRA, who announced this, said after an appreciable public education effort
to raise the awareness of the public on the excise tax, the time had come to
enforce the policy to the letter.
The Excise Tax Stamp Act requires Tax Stamp to
be affixed on specified excisable goods manufactured in the country, imported
into the country and other goods prescribed by the Minister of Finance.
Specifically, the Act stipulates that the
Excise Tax Stamp be affixed on excisable goods such as cigarettes and other
tobacco products, alcoholic beverages, non-alcoholic carbonated beverages,
bottled water and any other excisable product prescribed by the Minister.
Mr Nti said while in the past the GRA had
removed specified goods that did not bear the stamp from the shelves and
advised manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers to adhere to the law, this
time round the enforcement would involve the complete detention, seizure and
imposition of the required 300 per cent penalty of the duties and taxes
involved on culprits.
“I wish to reiterate that the days of impunity
about non-compliance with the tax laws are completely over. We wish to convey
to the public that they cannot choose and select which of the tax laws they
want to obey,” Mr Nti said.
“All the sanctions enshrined in the law on
failure to comply with the affixing of the excise tax stamp will be applied to
the letter,” he added.
Mr Nti said the exercise was not meant to
embarrass and harass anybody but to ensure that there was total compliance with
the law.
He said the excise tax stamp policy was being
implemented to control the importation and local production of excisable goods
for revenue, check the illicit trading, smuggling and counterfeiting of
excisable products, check under-declaration of goods, protect and increase tax
revenue and ensure the good health of Ghanaians.
He urged the public to desist from buying
products that did not bear the tax stamp.
GNA