Thousands of residents flocked to the Barbados Revenue Authority’s (BRA) tax clinics and in-person customer service facilities for this year’s income tax filing season.
When the 2022 income tax filing and payment (PIT) was completed on May 2, nearly 8,000 people used the clinics and nearly 11,000 calls were handled by the contact center.
The Authority’s communications officer, Erica Lazare, said the filing went well overall with a 71 percent compliance rate, culminating in a sharp increase in online traffic and calls on the last day of filing.
She added that there would be redress for PIT filers with legitimate claims who failed to file on time.
“On the last day there was a significant increase in the number of users of the TAMIS system and although we had a relatively high percentage of filers, TAMIS slowed down a bit at some points, but most importantly it still worked. We appreciate that some people had issues that may have prevented them from submitting their PIT on time. In those cases, we ask those individuals to go to their Account tab and submit an Objection for consideration. Be sure to include as much detail as possible.”
“Online payments increased again, reflecting improved taxpayer payment performance. We plan to publish some of the tax return stats on her website soon,” she shared.
Since 77 percent of individuals contacted the BRA for password resets, Lazare advised taxpayers to keep their usernames and passwords in a safe place. Most people only access the system once a year and forget about these details. The team is also working with the developers to improve the password recovery process.
She also urged individuals to verify their third-party information and file accurate returns as soon as possible to avoid last-minute rushes and to ensure bank or credit union information is available should a tax refund arise from declarations.
Individuals filing the reverse tax credit (RTC) for 2022 have until December 31, 2024 to file.
