IRD

The Inland Revenue Department is becoming more active in monitoring when people leave New Zealand but maintain ties with this country, Deloitte Dunedin associate tax director Phil Stevenson says.

Inland Revenue needed to look at how technology could help taxpayers deal efficiently with the department rather than using technology to take the cost out of the Government's administration, Deloitte Dunedin tax partner Peter Truman said yesterday.

One of New Zealand's leading tax practitioners has called the Inland Revenue Department's phone system a ''complete abomination'' and is calling for a return of face-to-face consultation time with IRD staff.

A Milton woman says she has received an apology from the Inland Revenue Department after claims it ignored her pleas that her name and IRD number were being used fraudulently by a Christchurch business for almost a year.

Deloitte Dunedin tax partner Peter Truman yesterday raised concerns about the potential sharing between government agencies of information gathered by Inland Revenue.

Tax professionals are urging vigilance from their clients as the financial year draws to a close and the feeling the Inland Revenue Department has the momentum of recent court decisions on its side.

All is far from well with the Inland Revenue Department, writes Labour's revenue spokesman, David Clark.

New Zealand taxpayers are well served by the Inland Revenue Department but vigilance is still required to prevent beaches of privacy, Deloitte Dunedin tax partner Peter Truman says.

Labour revenue spokesman David Clark has continued his campaign to try to force the Government to upgrade the country's IT services, warning that a breach of IRD data could happen soon.

The Inland Revenue Department has played the "moral card" in its Compliance Focus, effectively telling New Zealanders they have a civic duty to pay tax for the betterment of society and that tax evasion is wrong.

The crashing of the Inland Revenue Department website yesterday, the deadline for businesses to file GST returns, was a sign of worse to come, Labour revenue spokesman David Clark said.

Inland Revenue has released its first group of benchmarks for 16 industries, which may prove to be a double-edged sword for business operators.

As the festive season draws closer, staff and client functions are on the agenda of many Otago businesses.

The Government has increased funding to the Inland Revenue Department to target the cash economy, the economy where people accept cash for doing jobs but do not report it for tax purposes.