To ease acquisition of tax compliance certificate: Directorate General of Taxation launches call centres.

This was disclosed to the press in Yaounde by officials at the DGT directly charged with the implementation of the new directive. 

It was during a press briefing organised at the DGT head office in Yaounde, on Monday January 8.

According to the Head of Tax Legislation Unit at the DGT, Ebune Bertrand Njuma, the Tax Compliance Certificate is now required as an accompanying document for all travelers applying for visas in any Embassy and Consular Mission in Cameroon when they want to travel out of the country.

Applicants can secure the form to fill in their tax queries by downloading it from the website of the DGT, (www.impots.cm) that runs round the clock, seven days a week.

The Head of Tax Legislation Unit at the DGT refuted allegations that the government is indirectly introducing another tax on travelers, a tax that will increase the burden of taxation that many citizens say is already weighing too heavily on them.

Njuma clarified that infants and students who have no sources of income are exempted from acquiring the tax compliance certificate when travelling, as well as students who are travelling abroad either for studies or to spend their holidays.

He disclosed that equally exempted are people who are sick and need to be evacuated under emergency conditions. 

On the difference between a tax clearance certificate and the tax compliance certificate, Njuma said the tax clearance certificate is issued to a service seeker based on a specific tax item, whereas, the tax compliance certificate takes into account what the tax payer had declared on his or her tax application form and the extent to which the declared taxes had been fully paid in relation to the declared taxable items.

Tax Compliance Certificate in brief

The Head of Legislation and International Tax Division at the DGT, Faycel Abdoulaye, indicated that the drive by the government to expand the revenue base and increase non-oil earnings, motivated the Ministry of Finance to push through acquisition of the TCC in the 2024 Finance Bill, approved by parliament last November session. 

This, he said, is now viewed as a significant innovation in monitoring tax payer compliance.

He further disclosed that from January 1, 2024, the TCC became mandatory for all visa applications to diplomatic and consular missions. 

Therefore, employees, company directors, sole traders, liberal professionals, among others, must present this document in order to obtain visas.

Abdulaye was corroborated by Senior Tax Inspector, Dzozong Therese, who asserted that the TCC requirement for visa applications aims to improve individual taxpayer compliance, which is a cornerstone of the rule-of-law and equitable society.

Even more, she said, this law formalises a practice already occurring in many other diplomatic and consular missions, which often requested documents like business licenses, tax domicile certificates, and tax clearance certificates, to assess the applicant’s tax status.

The DGT officials were unanimous that the innovative method of acquiring the TCC, either through the website or by using the call centre, enables the applicant to avoid administrative hassles; and if any difficulties are encountered through these channels, the applicant has another option of obtaining his or her attestation by requesting a moratorium or payment deferral.