The Taxation Chamber

The Taxation Chamber is the national tax administration in Sudan, and the body responsible for assessing taxes legally due, collecting them and following up on taxpayers' compliance with them, and it operates within the system of the Ministry of Finance, as the Income Tax Act of 1986 defines the competent minister as the Minister of Finance and National Economy, and the Act stipulates that the Secretary-General of the Chamber shall implement its provisions and collect the taxes imposed under it and shall be responsible for them and for all matters relating to them.

Modern income taxes in Sudan date back to the 1960s, as personal income tax was imposed for the first time in July 1964, and real estate income became subject to business profits tax as of 1 January 1964, according to economic encyclopedias. Then the Income Tax Act of 1986 was issued, dated 18 December 1986, and it is the basic legislative framework for the work of the Chamber to this day with its successive amendments, and the Chamber also operates under the Value Added Tax Act of 1999 and the Stamp Duty Act, according to studies by the Sudan University of Science and Technology.

The tasks of the Chamber include inventorying and registering taxpayers and issuing the tax number, examining returns and issuing assessments, collecting income tax on individuals and business profits and value added tax on sales of goods and services, and combating tax evasion through field control, according to its plans published on its official website. Its official website states that its objectives include increasing revenues by expanding the tax umbrella, developing tax awareness and introducing rights and duties, and that its computerisation projects include the core system, the electronic portal, electronic invoicing and electronic payment, and the Chamber is headed by a Secretary-General assisted by a body of general administrations, offices and unified tax centres in the centre and the states.

(Sources: Official website of the Taxation Chamber tax.gov.sd; Income Tax Act of 1986 published on the official website of the Chamber; Journal of Economic Sciences, Sudan University of Science and Technology; Nations Encyclopedia)

— Editorial Team