Period of time during which taxes are collected
Although the taxation of an individual’s income is established on a calendar-year basis by the TAJ Commissioner General, a taxpayer may petition the Commissioner General, TAJ, for authorization to file on a fiscal-year basis if the Commissioner General, TAJ, allows permission for this to occur.
Income Tax Returns
It is necessary to file income tax returns on or before March 15th of the calendar year following the year of assessment, and the system used to calculate the amount of tax due on a given year’s income is a self-assessment system. TAJ receives and processes income tax returns. If you intend to pay income tax on your emoluments exclusively and do not expect to pay income tax on any other types of income, you do not need to submit a tax return with the TAJ , according to regulations.
When filing jointly, husbands and wives must state their willingness to be assessed jointly in writing. If they do not wish to be assessed jointly, husbands and wives must file separately.
Individual income tax returns must be filed electronically in order to be accepted for processing..
Taxes have been collected and are being remitted.
Over the course of the fiscal year, tax is due in four quarterly instalments on the 15th of each month, beginning on March 15 and ending on December 15. The first instalment is due on March 15, the second on June 15 and the third on September 15, with the first instalment due on March 15 and the second on June 15. A quarter’s worth of payments might be calculated based on an estimate of the year’s debt or the actual tax owed for the preceding year. A taxation year ends on March 15th of the next year if all expected tax payments for that taxation year have been made. If no expected tax payments have been made for that taxation year, the residual amount of income tax payable is due on March 15th of the following year. Even if the amount owed is past due, interest is accrued on the outstanding debt at a compounded annual rate of 16.62 percent. A violation may be subject to a penalty of up to 50% of the amount of the assessment if the TAJ makes a finding in favor of the violator.
The majority of the time, PAYE is withheld from emoluments; however, in cases when withholding is not practicable (for example, because the employer is not a Jamaican resident), the taxpayer is obliged to pay estimated tax to the Jamaican government in quarterly instalments.
Tax liabilities and audit.
The Commissioner General does not have the authority to conduct audits on selected tax returns or to assess a taxpayer for additional tax in certain circumstances unless the Commissioner General exercises his or her authority to do so. A taxpayer may be assessed for additional tax at any time prior to the expiration of the statute of limitations, which in most cases is six years. Tax audits can be carried out on the taxpayer’s behalf regardless of whether or not assessment notices have been issued to the taxpayer in question. If the Commissioner General believes that a taxpayer has been assessed for less tax than should have been levied, or if a taxpayer has failed to file a tax return, he or she may decide to assess tax responsibility.