The Finance Ministry's Directorate General of Taxation officially starts operating "one-stop-shop" tax offices Tuesday in line with the ministry's mission to "modernize" the service by next year.
The new offices, called "Pratama Tax Service Offices", will offer taxpayers more convenience as they will be able to pay various kinds of taxes, including value-added tax, income tax, and land and building tax, under one roof, Director General Darmin Nasution said Monday during a media conference.
"Starting tomorrow (Tuesday), taxpayers in South Jakarta's respective districts will no longer have to pay different taxes in different places," he said.
After conducting a one-year pilot project in Central Jakarta tax offices, the Directorate General will now roll out the new system to 12 South Jakarta offices: Setiabudi I, II, III; Tebet; Pancoran; Kebayoran Baru I, II, III; Kebayoran Lama; Pasar Minggu; Mampang Prapatan; and Cilandak.
Other tax offices in the capital will start introducing the "one-stop shop" next month, while those in Java and Bali will do so by the end of this year, making a total of 156 offices. Another 129 offices outside these two islands will have followed suit by next year, Darmin said.
"We expect an increase in tax revenue and the number of taxpayers as a result of this initiative," he said, while declining to reveal estimated growth this year.
The Central Jakarta district of the tax service, he said, recorded a 40 percent increase in tax revenue after the introduction of the pilot project, much higher than the average 20 percent increase projected for tax revenue nationwide.
Meanwhile, the head of the South Jakarta district of the tax service, Syarifuddin Alsyah, said his district expected a 32-percent increase in tax revenue following the introduction of the new system.
"We are optimistic that the South Jakarta district service alone will be able to collect Rp 15.3 trillion (US$1.7 billion) in tax revenue this year -- 30 percent higher than the some Rp 12 trillion collected last year -- although the new program only starts in the middle of the year," he said.
Nationwide, the government expects to collect over Rp 490 trillion in taxes this year, according to the 2007 national budget.
Taxpayers can call a tax service hotline on 0-800-1-595-735, or send a text message to 0-819-5-595-735 for more information on tax offices in the service's South Jakarta district. (06)
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