other than work related matters, nothing will send a more uneasy chill down my spine than a letter from the taxman aka Inland Revenue Board. don't get me wrong, it's not that i've been stashing away funds in a swiss account, or that i'm into money laundering (although i could do with a little more spare cash). it's just that my previous experience with those guys has left me unconvinced that their current motto (Mesra, Membantu dan Memuaskan which translates to Friendly, Helpful and Satisfying) is a valid proclaimation of the IRB's work ethics. (please let me know if anyone ever has a satisfying encounter with them.) i personally feel that they should have embraced virtues like transparent, responsible & fair.
anyway, it was with much trepidation that i received a letter from them 2 weeks ago, conveying the bad news that i owe them tax for the 2004 assessment year. i honestly don't know how that can be when i have been contributing by monthly deduction since the self-assessment system was implemented that year. not only that, they demanded in their customary high-handed manner that the outstanding amount be paid within 30 days, or else!
regaining composure after few days, i rummaged through the old records & retrieved the relevant receipts. i mulled over the matter for a few more days & then proceeded to draft an appeal letter to the powers-that-be, quoting the receipt numbers & payment schedule.
i didn't have to wait long to meet the officer today. he was definitely friendly & helpful but the experience was far from satisfying. after keying in my tax file number & staring intently at the flat-screen - i was certain i didn't notice an enlightened look on his face - he finally pronounced judgement. i not only don't owe them anything, i actually have a few thousand ringgit of accumulated overpaid taxes due to me.
so, dare i ask - since everything is computerised & i owe them nothing, how is it that i STILL get a letter demanding payment? i did, & he said, with a sheepish smile, that the said letter was essentially an acknowledgement i had paid the said amount for the said year. really, encik? then how do you explain these words :
actually i didn't ask the 2nd question because, true to the friendly & helpful disposition the Board is trying to promote, the officer offered to help me appeal for tax refund. furthermore, my accountant friend never fail to remind me - never mess with the taxman because he can make your life miserable with a click of the mouse.
so that's my less-than-satisfying encounter with the taxman. if they had it in their computerised records all this time, why didn't they just return the excess tax voluntarily. it's right there on the screen - i saw it myself. like i said, they should now work on being transparent, responsible & fair.
transparent enough for ordinary folks like us to know FOR SURE what is & what isn't taxable, & not subject to the taxman's whim & fancy;
responsible enough to, willingly & without hesitation, return excess taxes that DO NOT belong to them;
fair enough not to mete out eager punishment without due consideration that most folks will pay.
however, i'm neither holding my breath expecting the aforementioned changes nor for my cheque to arrive.
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doc in private practice venting steam....because life is more than just stethoscopes, syringes & getting woken up at unearthly hours.
10 comments:
I got the same letter stating that I owe them money ... then looked thru the pass taxes I had paid .... now they owe me money ...
My dad also recently received such letter... hahaha
sbanboy,
gives you the impression that they are playing a cat-&-mouse game, doesn't it?
i sometimes feel they purposely send out such letters in the hope that some people will actually pay without checking past records.
& when found out, they try to pacify you with promises of tax refunds, which may or may not materialise.
isn't that call DECEPTION?
lynnx,
hope your dad will take a leaf from our experiences.
The very year the tax department doesn't give any problems, you should count your blessings.
I would look it this way - you have a few thousand ringgit of accumulated overpaid taxes due to you!
What a pleasant surprise!
Not long ago, I received the same kind of letter, and paid up few hundreds after checking through my own and IRD's. I did sleep better after resolving the tax matters.
Doc, what are you going to do with the few thousand ringgit? :)
jonzz,
this therefore reflects poorly on them. if i pay the right amount on time every time, they should not demand for more - just because the officers are lackadaisical or the accountants can't do the maths.
now that we do the self-assessment, instead of going for upgrading courses or maths classes, maybe they have even more time to lepak at the warung.
yan,
before you pay up, did you check if you really owe them anything in the 1st place?
i've been thinking of a dSLR or a LCD TV, but i'd better make sure i get the cheque 1st.
:( that reminds me I have been asked to visit them. apparently they lost my records of 2004. in 2006 they overtaxed me..they admitted it when I went to see them. for 2004, i had paid them too. peninglah. i went to see them a few times oledi. usual response : system down. come back another day :(
beng,
you have also illustrated the importance of keeping all correspondence & tax receipts to back your claim that appropriate tax has been paid. i hope you still have those receipts.
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