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The
following is the text of an article by
Iran’s Minister of Commerce, Mohammad Shariatmadari, on the
aggregate tax bill which aroused controversy and concern among some
manufacturers that argued that the implantation of the bill might impede the
production of some companies.
The aggregate tax bill does not disadvantage
anyone and its implementation for goods and services will lend more clarity to
Iran's economy. According to the bill presented by the government
to Iran’s Parliament, its only goal is centralizing taxes for goods and
services, and reducing or eliminating other national or local taxes has not
been considered alongside it.
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“All national and local taxes received from manufactured,
intermediate and other types of goods will be brought together in one
unit.” |
It is certain that the implementation of
this bill will be to the benefit of producers more than anyone else, as most
of the manufacturing units have at one time or other objected to the current
method of taxation.
In any case upon the implementation of the
bill, all national and local taxes received from manufactured,
semi-manufactured or any other types of goods will be brought together under
one umbrella. The same condition has also been considered for imported goods
and consequently all duties to be received from such commodities will be
collected under the ‘admission duty’ label.
Admission duty will
include commercial profit and custom fees. According to the newly considered
custom tariffs, the fee will be fixed and the commercial profit will vary in
line with the changing situation of the economy.
The most important modification within this
bill will be a reduction in the number of decisionmakers on tariff rates. The
new bill requires two commissions to hold sessions in order to decide on
tariff rates, one being accountable to the Minister of Finance and Economic
Affairs and the other to the Minister of Interior.
The implementation of this bill will not be
to the disadvantage of the manufacturing sector but rather with the
elimination of taxes – such as the 2% charged by the Ministry of Education and
the 1% by the Physical Education Organization and so on – so manufacturers
will benefit from it.
The contents of this bill are not to
anyone’s disadvantage and its positive aspects will show themselves in the
long run, but it is certain that the decisions made in this bill are to the
benefit of the manufacturing sector in general and will not create any
difficulties for them.
The idea that the government intends to
eliminate all duties must not be promoted in society but by first taking into
account the economic situation of the country and second, considering its pros
and cons. The two commissions responsible for deciding annual tariffs may
alter the tariff rates to be paid by industrial units as required. |
