VAT reminders to be mailed electronically in pilot project

General notifications on VAT tax collections will start being sent via e-mail and text messages to account holders in order to ensure they do not incur penalties through an oversight.

The initiative, still in the form of a pilot project, is intended to provide a better service to entrepreneurs while streamlining and facilitating the government's way of collecting what it is owed, Finance Minister Tonio Fenech said.

Mr Fenech said the majority of entrepreneurs who incurred VAT-related penalties usually did so because they forgot to send in their forms on time.

The project will provide a simple yet effective service to busy businesses and entrepreneurs reminding them of their responsibilities and obligations. This, he said, would enable the VAT Department to dedicate its attention and resources to those who truly needed help and assistance. Mr Fenech said that, at this stage, it was not opportune to take the service on to a more personalised level, such as informing people of how much VAT was due, because such information was too sensitive for SMS notifications.

A Finance Ministry spokesman said there was at present no timeframe as to when the personalised service would be launched, adding that the pilot project required more feedback before such a step was taken. While the system already featured a level of security, this would need to be enhanced if the service was developed to include personal information.

Mr Fenech said the cost of this service will be shouldered by the VAT Department.

He encouraged those with active VAT numbers to make use of this free service and reminded them of the existing online filing service.

VAT Commissioner Joseph Sammut said the pilot project stemmed from the recognition of the importance of the application of modern means of communication to the administrative process. The system was dependent on user feedback for development and improvement and Mr Sammut encouraged those who make use of VAT services to sign up through the department's website.