We refer to the letter “有几个问题请教国内税务局” (16 Mar 2013) by 林天福先生. Mr Lim had a number of queries regarding the income tax filing process.

Under the Auto-Inclusion Scheme (AIS) for Employment Income, employers send their employees’ salary information directly to IRAS. IRAS will then pre-fill this salary information in the employees’ electronic tax returns, thereby simplifying their income tax filing process. In addition, we pre-fill their personal reliefs based on their previous year’s claims, where they are available.

With more employers participating in the AIS each year, IRAS has been able to extend the No-Filing Service (NFS) to nearly 60% of the individual taxpayers. These taxpayers do not need to file their tax returns unless they have other income to declare, or changes to make to the pre-filled personal reliefs.

Taxpayers who are not eligible for the NFS will need to file their tax returns, even if their employers are on the AIS. To complete their tax filing for the year, these taxpayers should go through their pre-filled tax returns, report any additional income that they might have, and key in their personal reliefs if they had not been pre-filled.

Mr Lim had asked if one needs to submit a tax return or pay taxes if his annual salary does not exceed $20,000. All taxpayers who have received a letter or SMS notification from IRAS to file a tax return should still do so, even if their income falls below this threshold. We have contacted Mr Lim to explain why there were two letters issued. Our letters to him were triggered by an erroneous entry in the employer’s return.

Mr Lim asked why the phone filing service had been discontinued. Last year, 97% of taxpayers who filed their tax returns did so electronically. Since 2010, we discontinued the phone filing service, as it was uneconomical to continue providing this service when the number of taxpayers using this mode of filing was very low. Taxpayers who are not familiar with e-Filing can call 1800 356 8300 or visit one of the 23 community centres located island-wide on weekend afternoons from now till 14 Apr 2013 between 2pm – 6pm.

We thank Mr Lim for his feedback and for the opportunity to clarify on tax filing.