http://www.ciat.org/images/documents/boletines/eng/y2010n18

ISSN 1684-9833 • No.18 / November 12, 2010

Join the blog

The Executive Secretariat Informs CIAT presented taxation trends in Latin America at AEAT and AECID seminar

We invite you to CIATalk, the new space provided by CIAT. Read the posts, give your opinion and actively participate.

The Executive Secretariat Informs CIAT presented taxation trends in Latin America at AEAT and AECID seminar The Tax Administrations Inform Argentina: AFIP focuses on virtual evasion Argentina: will assist Paraguay in strengthening customs controls El Salvador: Ministry of Finance launches tax transparency portal with financial information Kenya: President H. E. Kibaki calls for Tax Review Paraguay: Students gather over 8 million vouchers in tax formalization campaign Peru: Gold commercialization is included in GST drawdown system

A seminar on “Structuring of information systems for analyzing revenues and evaluating the impact of tax policy measures” was held at the Spanish Cooperation Training Center in La Antigua, Guatemala, on October 25-29. A presentation was made of the AEAT’s information system and the way it is used in the forecast, follow-up and analysis of tax revenues, as well as the evaluation of policies.

Based on the Spanish experience, consideration was given to the need for Latin American tax administrations to disseminate information that may facilitate the implementation of microsimulation tools, in order to evaluate (ex ante and ex post) the effects of regulatory changes and tax or social measures.

The presentations were made by Rafael Frutos Vivar, Head of the Tax Studies Unit (AEAT) and Coordinator of the Seminar, Natalia Losa Alvaro, Chief of Area of the Tax Computerization Department (AEAT) and Miguel Eduardo Pecho Trigueros, Tax Studies and Research Manager (CIAT).

The seminar material is available in the CIAT Library as well as in the virtual platform of the Tax Studies and Research Area Network.

Peru: SUNAT participated in international operation for curbing illegal and falsified medicines Venezuela: SENIAT achieves annual collection goal DGII of the Dominican Republic provides updates of regulations for applying the ITBIS Events Publications Other documents ¡Were you aware that!... ¡¿Really?!...

From left to right: Rafael Frutos Vivar, Head of the Studies Unit, Tax Studies and Statistics Service (AEAT); Merche Flórez, Director of the Spanish Cooperation Training Center in La Antigua, Guatemala; Miguel Pecho Trigueros, Tax Studies and Research Manager (CIAT).

eCIAT

Newsletter

The Tax Administrations Inform CIAT is a public international organization which groups the tax administrations of 38 countries, (29 Amarican countries, 6 European countries, 2 African countries and one Asian country), for the purpose of providing an integral service for the modernization of those administrations, by promoting their evolution, social acceptance and consolidation through the exchange of knowledge, experiences and the rendering of specialized technical assistance.

Executive Council Executive Secretariat The e-CIAT Newsletter is published and distributed electronically biweekly.

Register

Argentina: AFIP focuses on virtual evasion By means of an effective tool, the treasury will obtain updated information on the operators and all transactions carried out through Internet.

The Federal Administration of Public Revenues (AFIP), headed by Ricardo Echegaray, regulated a tool for reducing evasion on sales made via Internet, on detecting that 33% of the taxpayers using this platform show an inadequate fiscal behavior. With the new Special VAT Collection System, portals offering the intermediation service in electronic commerce will become agents for collecting the tax, thereby benefiting those taxpayers who comply with their tax obligations.

“It is important to note that this tool will not in any way affect the users of this service”, Echegaray clarified. He then went on to explain that the measure will allow AFIP to count on updated information regarding the operators and the transactions carried out, to then crosscheck the data of the commissions collected by the portals with the sales declared by the product vendors. “

Contact us:

Source: Portal - AFIP

CIAT Executive Secretariat / e-CIAT Newsletter P.O. Box 0834-02129 Panama, Republic of Panama.

Phone (507) 265-2766 / 265-5994 Fax: (507) 264-4926 E mail:ciat@ciat.org Web Site: http://www.ciat.org

Carlos Alberto Sánchez Correspondent

Argentina: will assist Paraguay in strengthening customs controls A cooperation agreement was signed by the General Directorate of Revenues of Argentina to assist Paraguay in implementing the Customs Transit Security Initiative and the Electronic Tax Seals system.

In a ceremony chaired by the incumbent of the Federal Administration of Public Revenues of the Republic of Argentina (AFIP), Ricardo Echegaray, the General Director of Customs of the Republic of Argentina, Siomara Ayerán, and the National Customs Director of the Republic of Paraguay (DNA), Javier Contreras Saguier, a mutual cooperation agreement was signed, whereby AFIP commits itself to provide technical assistance and counseling for developing and implementing the Customs Transit Security Initiative (ISTA), and the use of the Customs Monitoring Electronic Tax Seals system (PEMA).

In the ceremony, the AFIP director, Ricardo Echegaray, explained that his organization undertook a gradual process of technical innovation in the Customs office, “with a view to developing a technology that can currently be shared with the neighboring countries”.

Carlos Alberto Sánchez Correspondent

New Web Site: http://www.sri.gob.ec

eCIAT

Newsletter

El Salvador: Ministry of Finance launches tax transparency portal with financial information On October 26, 2010, the Ministry of Finance launched the first Tax Transparency Portal whose objective is to display information regarding the performance of the bases of tax policy that had never before been made public.

Attending the ceremony for presenting the Portal were the Minister of Finance, Carlos Cáceres, the Deputy Minister of Finance, Roberto de Jesús Solórzano and the World Bank Representative in El Salvador, Alberto Leyton, as well as other government officials.

Source: Portal - Ministerio de Hacienda Ramón Pérez Gómez Correspondent

Kenya: President H. E. Kibaki calls for Tax Review H. E. President Mwai Kibaki has said that the government will soon undertake a comprehensive review of tax system that will take into account simplicity and complements the objectives of vision Twenty Thirty. He said that the new system should be followed by legislative and institutional reforms that will progressively close the tax gap. The President was speaking during this Year’s Kenya Revenue Authority Taxpayers’ Week Award ceremony held at the KICC, Nairobi on 21st October 2010.

He said he was happy with the progress made in tax administration reforms over the recent past and that KRA has implemented various tax reforms under its Reforms and Tax Modernization Program. He added that although these reforms have measurably improved revenue collection and tax administration, more still needs to be done.

Source: Portal - Kenya Revenue Authority John Karimi Njiraini Correspondent

Paraguay: Students gather over 8 million vouchers in tax formalization campaign Students from several schools in Asuncion and other cities in Paraguay’s inland, gathered a total of 8.173.765 sales vouchers within the framework of the 2010 edition of the “ “Request, Collect and Win” campaign, organized by the State Undersecretariat of Taxation of the Ministry of Finance. This figure exceeds that of the previous year when 5.910.598 vouchers were collected.

The vouchers collected by students from 96 schools that were preclassified last August and September, were delivered to the Tax Administration, where the officials are currently verifying them. The students were previously trained with respect to the necessary requirements for the invoices to be considered valid.

Elizabeth Fernández de Corrales Correspondent

New Web Site: http://www.ciat.org

eCIAT

Newsletter

Peru: Gold commercialization is included in GST drawdown system Starting on December first, the internal commercialization of gold and its concentrates will be included in the GST drawdown system, which implies that every operation dealing with this mineral will be subject to the drawdown rate of 12%.

It is thus provided in the Superintendency’s Resolution N° 294-2010/SUNAT which stipulates the characteristics for incorporating in the drawdown system the sale of goods derived from the aquifer mining activity, regardless of who makes the sale.

Clara Loza Ramírez Correspondent

Peru: SUNAT participated in international operation for curbing illegal and falsified medicines SUNAT, through the Intendance for the Prevention of Smuggling and Border Control headed an important international action –via Internet– intended to combat the commercialization of falsified and illegal medicines.

The control task, known as “Pangea III-2010”, was coordinated by the World Customs Organization (WCO) and INTERPOL’s General Secretariat, with the participation of customs officials, police agents and national regulators of medicines from the participating countries. They were also supported by the International Organization for Combating the Falsification of Medical Products (IMPACT), Internet service providers, electronic payment services and the pharmaceutical industry.

Clara Loza Ramírez Correspondent

Venezuela: SENIAT achieves annual collection goal The National Customs and Tax Superintendent, José David Cabello Rondón, reported that the closing of the month of October, SENIAT exceeded the total collection goal for 2010, which had been set at 82.4 billion Bolivares.

Mr. Cabello Rondón specified that between January and October of this year, there was a global colelction of 82.6 billion Bolivares, which implies a 100.2% compliance with the goal established in the national budget for the 2010 fiscal year.

“SENIAT maintains its effective management and an evidence thereof is compliance with the anual goal two months prior to concluding the fiscal period”, according to the country’s top level customs and tax authority.

Source: Portal - SENIAT Esther Madrid Blanco Correspondent

DGII of the Dominican Republic provides updates of regulations for applying the ITBIS The General Directorate of Internal Taxes (DGII) disseminated the updates of Regulation 14098, introduced by the Executive Body through Decree 603-10, regarding the Application to Title III of the Tax on Transfers of Industrialized Products and Services ITBIS. These are measures dealing with the application of the Regulation for controlling the printing, issuance and delivery of tax vouchers and the application of the fiscal printers project.

New Web Site: http://www.sri.gob.ec

eCIAT

Newsletter

Germania Montás, acting General Director, assured that the changes have no tax impact; they rather seek to regulate some aspects that had been considered in recent tax reforms, but which had not been adapted to date.

Nieves Vargas Collado Correspondent

Events “Evaluation Approaches, Methods and Techniques” Course December 14 through 16 Madrid, Spain

The “Evaluation Approaches, Methods and Techniques“ course will be held in Madrid, Spain, on December 14-16, 2010. This course is organized by the Institute of Fiscal Studies and will be conducted by professors Manuel Arellano (Professor of Econometrics of the Monetary and Financial Studies Center, CEMFI), Osvaldo Feinstein (Professor of the Master’s Program in Evaluation of UCM; former Manager and Adviser of the World Bank’s Evaluation Department) and José María Labeaga (General Director of the Institute of Fiscal Studies) This course is aimed at teaching students the approaches, methods and techniques for evaluation of public sector interventions (policies, programs and projects). Examples from the World Bank’s evaluation experience as well as of some agencies of the United Nations System will be used.

Conference on “Housing Taxation and Regulation” CESifo Munich, 19-20 November 2010

Most western governments intervene heavily in the housing market. This is done, for instance, by regulating the supply of housing, by giving a preferential tax treatment to owner-occupied housing, and with means-tested social housing programs. The purpose of the forthcoming CESifo Economic Studies conference on “Housing Taxation and Regulation”, held on November 19-20, 2010 in Munich, is to stimulate research concerning these policies. We welcome both empirical and theoretical papers about housing markets that address policy relevant questions.

Public Financial Management in Times of Crisis: Fiscal Realities and Management Challenges in Greece and the EU FONDAFIP Association for the International Foundation of Public Finance HELLENIC OBSERVATORY European Institute, London School of Economicsand Political Science

Most western governments intervene heavily in the housing market. This is done, for instance, by regulating the supply of housing, by giving a preferential tax treatment to owner-occupied housing, and with means-tested social housing programs. The purpose of the forthcoming CESifo Economic Studies conference on “Housing Taxation and Regulation”, held on November 19-20, 2010 in Munich, is to stimulate research concerning these policies. We welcome both empirical and theoretical papers about housing markets that address policy relevant questions.

New Web Site: http://www.ciat.org

eCIAT

Newsletter

Publications New in the Web Improvement of the effectiveness of the tax administrations through new organizational models CIAT Technical Conference - 2010 Paris, France

Compilation by CIAT of lectures presented during the Technical Conference held in Paris, France, on October 18-21, 2010.

Our documents Bibliographic News This section offers for your reference the latest documents from CIAT and other publishers, including Journal articles and other regular publications, research papers and studies.

Other documents Taxation and Decentralization Richard Bird November, 2010

Strengthening subnational governments is high on the policy agenda of many developing countries. From an economics perspective, the most important potential benefit from decentralization is the increased efficiency (and consequent welfare gain) that comes from moving governance closer to the people. To achieve this benefit, however, close attention must be paid to the design and implementation of subnational tax systems.

 ¥Were you aware that!...

Welcome to Training Services Our activities are targeted mainly at implementing e-learning courses with the purpose of helping improve the professionalism of TA officials by the design and implementation of training programs to meet the needs and requirements of the TAs.

New Web Site: http://www.sri.gob.ec

eCIAT

Newsletter

¡¿Really?!

SO IT WAS... Miguel de Cervantes, Tax Collector The life of Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra, one of the most famous authors of Universal Literature, was especially eventful. For this reason, he combined his vocation as a writer with the most diverse activities and situations. Thus, in his early life he served as Chamberlain to Cardinal Acquaviva in Rome, enrolling himself later on as a soldier and bravely fighting against the Turks in the battle of Lepanto. Subsequently, he was imprisoned by some Berber pirates and remained five years as a slave in Algiers. Following his liberation he devoted himself to write with greater dedication, but the need for additional resources to live, led him to work at Felipe II’s Royal Treasury.

New Web Site: http://www.ciat.org