employment income and its computation
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EMPLOYMENT
INCOME AND ITS COMPUTATION
Introduction
In
essence, there are vital questions which must be answered with respect to employment income. These include:
What consist
of employment income? What does employment mean? Who is the employee? Who is
the employer?
Employment
income is in other words known as ‘remuneration’ which refers to the total
value of all payments, in money or in kind, made or owing to an employee
arising from the employment of that employee. Employment income is strictly
earned by a natural person. The said
natural person shall be an individual who is the employee who has entered into a contract of employment; or who has
entered into any other contract under which he undertakes to work personally
for the other party to the contract. The said other party will be the employer, a natural or legal person,
including the Government and its executive agencies.
The significance of the Income Tax Act, 2004 to Employment
Income
When discussing
about employment income computation there is no way one can avoid considering among
other things the statutory income tax obligation. Mainly this is the backbone
of employment income computation. It follows therefore that in this
presentation, I will discuss about employment income and its computation as
provided for under the Income Tax Act No. 11 of 2004, Cap 332 of the Laws hereinafter
the ITA, which is the tax regime in force.
Further to that I will talk about the statutory social security
contributions of which also affects employment income computation together with
the other employers' responsibilities with regard to employees’ remuneration to
include withholding obligations and payment of Skills and Development Levy as
provided for under the Vocational Education and Training Act No. 1 of 1994,
Chapter 82 of the Laws.
Under
the provisions of s.3 of the ITA, “employment” is defined both in its ordinary
meaning and as well in its extended meaning.
Employment is defined to include a position of an individual in the
employment of another person; a position of an individual as a Manager of an
entity other than a partnership; a position of an individual entitling the
individual to a periodic remuneration in respect of the services performed; or
a public office held by an individual, and includes a past, present and prospective employment.
Furthermore,
under the provisions of s.3 of the ITA, an employee is stated as an individual
who is the subject of an employment, conducted by an employer; the employer is defined
as a person who conducts, has conducted,
or has the prospect of conducting the employment of the said individual
person. It should be noted that the
position of the law as stated clearly provides for taxation of employment
income for individual employees who receive payments from present employers for
present services being offered, former employers for past services and those
who are in receipt of income for forthcoming employment. The law assumes the
position that one can receive employment income from past employer, present
employer and future employer.
The Concept of Income
Accountants
usually speak in terms of “gross income” or “net income”. These terms facilitate
assigning money amounts and as well ascertaining statutory payroll deductions
thereon. However, despite using such terms, at the end of the day accountants must ensure that they rely upon how
the relevant law defines the term “income” in order
to determine the proper and correct net income. The general rule is that income from employment is “the individuals
gain or profits from any employment for a year of income”. As provided under the provisions of s. 20 of
the ITA the “year of income” being
referred here is the calendar year which is very critical in that income tax chargeable
on employment income is levied on an annual basis. It follows therefore that, in
ascertaining the respective income tax liability, one must calculate the said employment
income over the period of twelve months. All together the income tax liability
is paid while an employee in earning the said income and therefore practically,
taxation of employment income is done on monthly basis. An aggregate of amounts paid to an individual
employee during the month constitutes monthly pay whether or not the actual pay
is weekly or at shorter or longer periods that an individual can be paid by his
employer or an associates of the employer.
Classification of Employment Income
Instead
of defining income the ITA classify income by reference to the respective
sources from which it may be derived. Under the provisions of s. 6 of the ITA
chargeable income of a person for the year of income include income from business,
investment and income from any employment. The provisions of s.7(2) of the ITA enumerates what constitutes gains or profits of
employment to include;
Payment
of wages, salary, payment in lieu of leave, fees, commissions, bonuses,
gratuity or any subsistence, travelling, entertainment or other allowance
received in respect of employment or services rendered; payment providing for
any discharge or reimbursement of expenditure incurred by the individual or an
associate of the individual; payment for the individual agreement to any
conditions of the employment (e.g hardship allowance); retirement contributions
and retirement payments; payment for redundancy or loss or termination of
employment; other payment made including benefits in kind.
Where an
employer has put in place incentive schemes whereby prizes or cash may be
awarded to employees for the efficient performance of their duties, such
payments or the market value of the said prizes are taxable on the respective employees.
However,
where payments or benefits to be included in calculating the employees’ income
from employment is not easily attributable to a particular month, then the
amount is treated as paid to the employee proportionately over each month in a
calendar year during which the payment or benefit is extended.
Employment Benefits in Kind
When an
employer provides to the personal needs of the employee in terms of goods or
services, (as opposed to money) such provisions amount to employment benefits
in kind. Recent years have witnessed a substantial increase in the variety and
quantum of benefits and advantages other than salaries and wages, provided by
employers for their personnel, both at the executive and other levels of
employment. With regard to company
executives, these benefits are probably the offspring of high tax rates which
make salary increase less attractive.
The benefits range from medical coverage, use of company cars and other
properties, residential houses, education allowances, security allowances,
profit sharing, commodity discounts, free or subsidized loans, free transport,
paid holidays etc. It should be noted that our tax jurisdiction has brought
within the ambits of income taxation most fringe benefits. The
general rule is that benefits are taxable as emolument of employment. All
benefits in kind shall be included in calculating the employees’ income from
employment. The value of benefits is in general the market value i.e. the money
that a person would have to pay on the market to receive the same goods or
services. However, under the provisions of s.27 of the ITA special
quantification rules for the provision of subsidised loans, residential housing
and motor vehicle are outlined.
Forgone Interest on
Loan as taxable Employment Benefit
Where an
employer provides a loan to the employee and where the term of the loan is
twelve months or more and the aggregate amount of the loan and any other
similar loans outstanding at any time during the previous twelve months exceeds
three months basic pay, with no interest or interest rate below the statutory
rate; the foregone interest amount on the loan is a taxable benefit to the
employee. The benefit for the year of income is quantified as the difference
between the interest the employee pays (if any) and the interest that would
have been paid using the statutory interest rate applicable during the year of
income. Statutory rate in relation to a calendar year means the Bank of
Tanzania discount rate at the start of the year (for the year 2009 the said
rate is 17.53%).
Residential Housing as taxable Employment Benefit
Benefit
derived from the use of residential premises by an employee of the Government
or any institution whose budget is fully or substantially out of Government
budget funding is exempt. On the other hand where an employer other than the
government have provided an employee with a residential house, the value of
housing benefit including any furniture is calculated as the lesser of the
annual market value of the rental of the house; or the greater of 15% of the employees
total income for the year excluding the housing benefit component and the
expenditure claimed as a deduction by the employer in respect of the premises
during the year of income. Where an employee contributes an amount towards rent
payment, the employee will be entitled to a credit of the amount paid by him
during computation of the taxable housing benefit.
M/Vehicle for Private Use as Taxable Employment Benefit
The
private use of motor vehicle during a year of income provided in return for
services by way of employment is taxable on the employee. The quantification of
the said car benefit is provided by the Fifth Schedule to the ITA as hereunder:
Engine size of vehicle
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Quantity of Payment
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Vehicle less than five years old
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Vehicle
more than five years old
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Not
exceeding 1000cc
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Shs.
250,000/=
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Shs.
125,000/=
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Above
1000cc but not exceeding 2000cc
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Shs.
500,000/=
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Shs.
250,000/=
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Above
2000cc but not exceeding 3000cc
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Shs.
1,000,000/=
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Shs.
500,000/=
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Above
3000cc
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Shs.
1,500,000/=
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Shs.
750,000/=
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In addition,
benefits from the use of motor vehicle enjoyed by an employee is excluded from
the income of the employee where the employer does not claim any deduction (expenses for running the vehicle) or
relief (tax allowance for wear and tear) in relation to ownership of the said
vehicle. Since the Government does not
pay income tax from business activities that are the functions of government it
does not claim deductions and hence Government employees do not pay tax on this
benefit.
Exempt/Non – Taxable Payments
Under
the provisions of s.7(3) of the ITA, certain amounts are specifically excluded
from gains or profits from an employment, these include: On premise cafeteria
services that are available on a non-discriminatory basis to all employees such
as a canteen at work place. There is an exemption also with regards to medical
service, payment for medical services and payment for insurance for medical
services provided to the employee, the employee’s spouse and up to four of the
employee’s children if available on a non-discriminatory basis to all employees
of the employer. Medical service such as dispensary facility at work place;
payment for medical services such as employees and their families being treated
at selected hospitals or where employees are reimbursed medical bills.
Furthermore,
where an employee receives subsistence, travelling or other allowance that
represents solely the reimbursement of expenditure that he has incurred wholly
and exclusively in the production of his income from employment or services
rendered then such an amount is exempt. This means where the employee receives
travelling and accommodation allowance and the said money is spent entirely on
travelling and accommodation for the employer’s business purposes, then the
payment is not taxable on the employee.
Further
to the above mentioned exempt amounts, where an employer makes payment for
providing travelling for the employee, the employee’s spouse and up to four
children between the place of work and the place of domicile which is more than
20 miles away, the payment is not included in calculating the income from
employment provided that the employee is recruited or engaged for employment
solely in the service of the employer at the place of employment. For example
an employer-provides passage costs for the employee to take up employment or to
go on annual leave for the employee and the employee’s family the payment for
the passage is not taxed subject to meeting those requirements.
Where
any Foreign Service allowance to any employee in the service of the Government
is certified by the Treasury to represent compensation for the extra cost of
having to live out of the United Republic in order to perform the person’s
duties; that allowance is not regarded as employment income for income tax
purposes. Foreign Service allowances include educational allowances for
children of diplomats serving overseas.
A
scholarship or educations grant payable in respect of tuition or fees for an
individual employee receiving full-time instruction at an educational
establishment shall be exempt from income tax. “Scholarship” includes an exhibition, bursary or any other similar
educational endowment. However, where an
individual employee becomes a full-time student for any period there is no
legal provision to exempt the salary which the employee continues to receive.
Sitting
allowance payable to a member of board of directors of a public institution is
reimbursement or compensation for the extra costs incurred by the member in
order to perform the member’s board duties. Such allowance is not taxable.
Small
benefits or payments that are unreasonable or administratively impracticable
for the employer to allocate to their recipients are also not taxable.
Retirement Contributions
Under
the provisions of s.5(1) of the ITA read together with s.61(1), retirement
contributions by individual employees to approved
retirement funds, subject to the limit of the actual contribution or the statutory amount, are not taxable. This
means when calculating the employee remuneration one has to exclude that
portion of the statutory social security contribution. In Tanzania up to now
there are four approved social security schemes. These are the National Social
Security Fund (NSSF), which is administered under the National Social Security
Fund Act, 1997; the Parastatal Pensions Fund (PPF) which is administered under
the Parastatal Pension Act No. 14 of 1978 as amended by Act No. 25 of 2001. The
Public Service Pensions Fund (PSPF) established under the Public Service
Retirement Benefit Act, 1999 and the Local Government Provident Fund (LGPF) established
under the Local Government Provident Fund Act, 2000. Every employer is under the legal
obligation to register with the relevant Approved Fund for the purpose of
submitting statutory employees’ social security contributions.
Residence: Scope of Employment Income Liable to Tax
The
residence status of an individual employee is very crucial due to the fact that
our tax system depends on source and residence.
Under the provisions of s.6(1) of the ITA, a resident employee is taxed
differently to a non resident employee. The chargeable income of an individual
employee for the year of income who is a non resident shall only be to the
extent that the income has a source in the United Republic of Tanzania; while
for a resident employee it is irrespective of its source. For a non resident
employee the income tax rate is 15% of the gross income payable which the
employee has earned from Tanzania, and the amount withheld satisfies the income
tax liability of the said employee; while for the resident employees income tax
is payable in accordance with the applicable individual income tax rates as
provided under the first schedule to the ITA.
Under
the provisions of s.66(1) of the ITA, an individual is a resident in the United
Republic for a year of income if the individual;
(a)
Has a permanent home in the United Republic
(Tanzania mainland and Tanzania Zanzibar) and is present in the United Republic
during any part of the year of income
(b)
Is present in the United Republic during the year
of income for a period or periods amounting in aggregate to 183 days or more;
(c)
Is present in the United Republic during the year
of income and in each of the two preceding years of income for periods
averaging more than 122 days in each such year of income; or
(d)
Is an employee or an official of the Government
of the United Republic posted abroad during the year of income
Determination of Employee’s Net Income
Net
income refers the employee’s take home amount; this is arrived at after
subtracting all the statutory and other deductions which include among others income
tax and statutory social security contributions. As mentioned before in this
paper, both non resident and resident individual employee’s income tax
liability is calculated on annual basis though payable on monthly basis while
it is being earned (Pay As You Earn). As stated above, for a non resident
employee the income tax rate is 15% of the gross income payable which the
employee has earned from Tanzania only; this rate is a final withholding and
satisfies the income tax liability of the said employee. Whereas for the resident employees income tax
is payable in accordance with the applicable individual income tax rates of
which, with effect from 1 July, 2008 are as hereunder:
Monthly
Income Rate Payable Where monthly income
does not exceed Shs.100,000/=
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NIL
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Where
monthly income exceeds Shs. 100,000/= but does not exceed shs. 360,000/=
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15%
of the amount in excess of Shs.100,000/=
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Where
monthly income exceeds Shs. 360,000/= but does not exceed Shs.540,000/=
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Shs.
39,000/= plus 20% of the amount in excess of Shs. 360,000/=
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Where
monthly income exceeds Shs. 540,000/= but does not exceed Shs. 720,000/=
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Shs.
75,000/= plus 25% of the amount in excess of Shs.540,000/=
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Where
monthly income exceeds Shs. 720,000/=
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Shs.
120,000/= plus 30% of the amount in excess of Shs.720,000/=
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Lump sum Payments and Payments Relating Months or Years other
Than Those of Payment
Lump-sum
payments to employees may take the form of gratuities; leave pay,
compensations, bonus, commissions etc. which may cover several months of a year
or the whole of a year. Lump-sum payments should be included in the year of
payment and be taxed on the basis of the adjusted monthly pay for the year. However,
under the provisions of s.7(4) of the ITA payment for redundancy or loss or
termination of employment has to be spread over the period of six years for
those who have been in employment for more years or actual years of employment
instead of taxing the benefit bin the year of payment.
Obligation of the Employer to Withhold Tax
The
income tax chargeable on employment income is operated by withholding scheme. Under
the provisions of s.81 of the ITA every resident employer is required to
withhold income tax upon payment of employment income to an employee.
Furthermore the employer shall remit to the Tanzania Revenue Authority the income
tax withheld from employees’ remunerations within seven days from the end of
the month during which the monthly remuneration is paid as is required under
the provisions of s.84 of the ITA. It should be noted that failure to observe
this legal requirement renders the employer liable to the tax liability plus
the accruing interests.
Primary and Secondary Employment
It is common
now days to find employees who have more than one source of employment income.
These may include individuals with part time employments with the common
example of professionals to include accountants, auditors, doctors, lecturers,
ICT experts etc. Where an employee has two or more employments at the same time
both or all employers are required to withhold income tax. Paragraph 18 of the
Income Tax Regulations, 2004 requires such an employee in concurrent
employments, to select one of those employments to be the employee’s primary
employment and the remaining employments shall be secondary employment(s). Furthermore,
the employee is required to notify all the other employer(s) that are the
employee’s secondary employers. The primary employer will withhold income tax
in accordance to the individual tax rates as stated above (progressive rates),
whereas the secondary employer(s) shall withhold income tax at the highest
individual tax rate i.e 30% for each
payment to the employee that constitutes income from employment.
Monthly Adjustments
As
mentioned before the general rule is that income from employment is the
individual’s gains or profits from employment for a year of income (calendar
year i.e Jan-December). Where the monthly pay is constant throughout the year
of income, the aggregate monthly tax computed will be the same as the annual
tax computed. However, where the monthly pay fluctuates or the income is earned
for part of the year only it will be necessary to make adjustments. This is in
order to ensure that the aggregate amount of tax withheld during the year is
equal to the employee’s annual tax liability for the year. Fluctuation in
monthly pay may take place particularly as a result of lump sum payments by way
of bonus, gratuity, arrears of salary, commission, payment in lieu of leave,
change in monthly income, change of employment/new employment etc. The monthly
adjustments are more appropriate with seasonal employees, those who work for
few months in the calendar year eg farming and tourism.
End of the Year Adjustments
End the
year adjustments are essentially intended to deal with any over or under
payment of PAYE that occurred during the year. Where there is an excess in tax
withheld the same will be carried forward for offset against the January tax
liability, and any excess still unabsorbed will be recovered in the subsequent
months. On the other hand, if the review discloses an underpayment of PAYE, the
outstanding liability is carried forward and recovered together with the normal
monthly PAYE in the following year. However, where an employee leaves the
services of the employer, the entire amount must be recovered in the full from
the employees final pay.
Other Employer’s Obligations
a)
Statement
of Tax Withheld
Under
the provisions of s.84 of the ITA every employer who is obliged to withhold tax
from payments to their employees is required to file with the Commissioner for
Domestic Revenue, a duly completed Statement of Tax Withheld within 30 days after the end of six months
calendar period. The employer must include in the said statement employees for
which employment with the employer constitutes a secondary employment. For this
purpose an employer must enquire from his employees (for whom he is a primary
employer at a maximum of six-monthly intervals) whether the employee has
another employment.
b)
Provision
of Withholding Certificate
Every
year an employer who has withheld tax or is liable to withhold tax under the
PAYE system must prepare and serve on their employees a certificate stating the
amount of employment income paid during the year and the amount of tax withheld
from the payment. This is a requirement under the provisions of s. 85 of the
ITA; the statement must be served on each employee by 30th January
following the end of the year. If the employment ends during the year the
employer must serve such a certificate on the employee within 30 after
cessation of the employment.
The
withholding certificate issued by the employer as per above paragraph should be
in prescribed format.
c)
Imposition
of Skills & Development Levy
Skills
& Development Levy (SDL) is a tax chargeable to employers imposed in
accordance with the Vocational Education and Training Act, 1994, as amended by
the Finance Act No.14 of 2001. The levy is a revenue source for the Government
for financing of vocational training to empower Tanzanians with skills required
for self employment. The levy is payable by the employer who has in his
employment four or more employees.
It is charged at 6% on gross monthly
emoluments (including retirement contribution) and it is payable on or before
the seventh day following the end of the respective month to the Commissioner
for Domestic Revenue.
Under
the provisions of the said law “Gross monthly emoluments” are all payments made
to employees by the employer in reward for the services rendered. They include
wages, salary, leave pay, sick pay, payment in lieu of leave, fees, commission,
bonus, gratuity and any subsistence, travelling, entertainment or any other
allowances which are paid to employees by an employer in respect of his
employment or service. However, allowances which are paid to employees for the
purpose of getting the employers work accomplished are not part of the gross
emoluments if expended wholly and
exclusively for that purpose. The
levy is also imposed on emoluments paid to casual labourers and temporary
employees.
Certain
employers are exempt from payment of Skills and Development Levy. These
include: The Central Government, the Local Government, Religious Institutions,
Diplomatic Missions including the United Nations Agencies, Training and
Educational Institutions, Charitable Organizations and employment in farms.
Employment Income
Computation: Worked Example:
In the
month of July 2008 a private company recruited a newly graduate as an ICT
support staff who will earn a monthly basic salary of shs. 1,400,000/=. The
company enrols him with the company medical insurance scheme, furthermore the
company is registered with the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) and hence
the employee immediately became a member of the Fund. With immediate effect the
company provided him with a two bedroom residential house of which he has to
pay 5% of his basic salary as rent, he moved in at once. The residence has an annual market rent of shs.
2,400,000/= and the employer will claim a total of shs. 970,000/= in repairs
and maintenance of the rented premises during the year. The company further
grants him a utility allowance of shs. 100,000/= per month. Due to the fact
that the employee is on call 24 hours the company provided him with a new
company car which is above 2000cc but not exceeding 3000cc, and the company
continues to incur all motor vehicle running costs including repairs and
further claims tax allowance by virtue of ownership of the vehicle. The company
as well provided him with a mobile phone and an allowance of 80,000/= per month
to enable him buy vouchers so as he is online throughout. Once a year the
employee is entitled to a leave allowance to the tune of one month basic salary,
he will take his annual leave in December. The company also grants a thirteenth
salary to its employees’ payable as bonus in December being the company Christmas
present.
Compute the net take home amount for the month of December,
2008
Worked Example Solution:
Stage I
Computation
of annual taxable car benefit:
Size of the vehicle Engine
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Vehicle less than five years
old
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Vehicle more than five years
old
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Above 2000cc
but not exceeding 3000cc
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Shs. 1,000,000/=
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Shs. 500,000/=
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The
vehicle is less than 5 years old and the taxable car benefit is for six months
only July – December 2008 i.e shs. 500,000/=
Stage II
Housing Benefit computation:
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Basic salary
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8,400,000
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Leave travel allowance
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1,400,000
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Bonus
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1,400,000
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Utility Allowance
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600,000
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Mobile phone allowance
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480,000
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Motor vehicle benefit
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500,000
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Annual total income (excl. housing)
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12,780,000
|
|
|
|
|
|
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The lesser of:
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(a) Annual market value
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2,400,000
|
|
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and:
|
|
(b) the greater of:
|
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(i) 15% of the employee total income
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1,917,000
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(ii) Deductions claimed by an employer
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970,000
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|
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If follows that the annual housing benefit is:
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1,917,000
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Monthly housing benefit thereon
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159,750
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|
|
Stage III
Monthly Adjustment
|
|
|
|
|
|
one
month
|
Jul- Nov
08
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December
|
Annual
|
Particulars
|
remuneration
|
remuneration
|
remuneration
|
remuneration
|
|
|
|
|
|
Basic salary
|
1,400,000
|
7,000,000
|
1,400,000
|
8,400,000
|
leave travel
allowance
|
-
|
-
|
1,400,000
|
1,400,000
|
Bonus
|
-
|
-
|
1,400,000
|
1,400,000
|
Utility Allowance
|
100,000
|
500,000
|
100,000
|
600,000
|
Mobile phone
allowance
|
80,000
|
400,000
|
80,000
|
480,000
|
Motor vehicle
benefit
|
83,333
|
416,665
|
83,333
|
499,998
|
Housing Benefit
|
159,750
|
798,750
|
159,750
|
958,500
|
Employee monthly
total income
|
1,823,083
|
9,115,415
|
4,623,083
|
13,738,498
|
deductions:
|
|
|
|
|
10% NSSF (excluding benefit in kind)
|
158,000
|
790,000
|
438,000
|
1,228,000
|
5% mothly rent
|
70,000
|
350,000
|
70,000
|
420,000
|
Taxable Income
|
1,595,083
|
7,975,415
|
4,115,083
|
12,090,498
|
|
|
|
|
|
Revised monthly
taxable income
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
1,007,542
|
Monthly PAYE
|
382,525
|
1,912,625
|
1,138,525
|
202,262
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Tax before adjust.(1,912,625 + 1,138,525)
|
3,051,150
|
|
|
|
Tax after adjustment
(202,262 X 12)
|
2,427,144
|
|
|
|
Difference (would
have been tax overstated)
|
624,006
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Stage IV
|
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Conclusion
Despite
the advancement in technology, human beings are still needed in different
operational activities by both natural and legal persons. For this reasons
employment contracts will prevail and hence employment income. It is therefore
of utmost importance that Accountants are well equipped with the knowledge on employment
income computation for the sake of accuracy.
References:
Luoga, F.D.A, A Source
Book of Income Tax Law in Tanzania, Dar es Salaam University Press, 2000.
Myneni, Dr. S.R, Law of
Taxation, Allahabad Law Agency, Delhi, 2001
The
Employment and Labour Relations Act No.6 of 2004
The
Income Tax Act No 11 of 2004, Cap 332 of Tanzanian Laws
The
Income Tax Act, 2004, Regulations, GN No. 464 of 2004
The Vocational
Education and Training Act, 1994, Cap 82 of the Tanzanian Laws
Residence,
Scope of Liability and Source of Income and Loss, Practice Note No. 09/2004 of
the Tanzania Revenue
Income
from Employment, Practice Note No. 10/2004 of Tanzania Revenue Authority
Allowances,
Gifts and Tips Income from Employment, Practice Note No. 11/2004 of the Tanzania
Revenue Authority.
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