The Fiji Revenue and Customs Service (FRCS) collected a cumulative net revenue of $2.285b at the closure of the 2022-2023 fiscal year, exceeding the forecast by $33.3m or 1.5 per cent.
Total revenue collections also surpassed 2021-2022 fiscal year collections by $592.7m, or 35 per cent.
FRCS acting chief executive Malakai Naiyaga has attributed the favourable cumulative collection to the performance of key tax categories such as Value Added Tax, which contributed $1 billion towards the total collections, income taxes which raked in $623.9 million, trade tax that earned $472.7 million and other taxes and levies which got $188.8 million of the tax mix.
Naiyaga said the revenue achievement mirrors the earlier-than-anticipated overall economic recovery, underpinned by the consistently strong performance in sectors like services, wholesale and retail trade and manufacturing.
“The positive variances observed in both the monthly and the annual collection point towards a significant overall economic recovery compared to a year ago.”
“This recovery can be attributed to various factors, such as the services sector benefitting from increased tourism activity, higher income taxes paid by companies based on improved turnover and profits, and the pent-up consumer demand leading to increased VAT collections. These factors collectively contribute to the economic upturn, reflecting a positive trend across different sectors and fiscal aspects of the economy.”
He added that the revenue performance has set a good platform for the new 2023-2024 fiscal year, noting the $3.1b revenue target. FRCS will be working in partnership with our stakeholders and taxpayers to continue to develop a national culture of tax and customs compliance.
Naiyaga said support will be provided to taxpayers to assist with tax filing and payment, in addition to conducting various awareness and stakeholder forums for the 2023-2024 National Budget.
