Malta To Issue Tax Refunds To Companies And Individuals

by Robert Lee, Tax-News.com, London

31 August 2007

The Maltese government has announced that more than 21,000 eligible individuals and companies will be receiving long-overdue tax refunds stemming from the introduction of a modernised self-assessment system in 1999, but many taxpayers will have to wait more than two years before they are fully refunded.

The refunds seek to compensate a total of 21,451 companies and individuals who overpaid tax prior to the introduction of a computerised system in 1999, and fulfills a pledge announced in the government's last budget.

Although the government is not obliged to pay interest on many of these refunds, it has said that some interest will be paid to taxpayers in receipt of refunds due from before 1998, where the government failed to meet its obligations laid down by the law.

“Since 1999, we have been up to date. The mission is now to clear out those old files which remained under the manual system," Parliamentary Secretary Tonio Fenech told a news conference.

Fenech added that taxpayers would receive their refunds within the next 28 months, with the first installments likely to be paid out by the end of 2007. However, most taxpayers will get their refunds much sooner than this, he revealed, with only a smaller number of larger companies, who are owed more than Lm10,000 (EUR23,000), having to wait the full 28 months to get all their money back.

When asked whether he thought the 28 month deadline was unacceptably long, Fenech pointed out that most small companies would be getting their refunds within four months.

“About 4,000 people will receive their refund within four months. About 10,000 will receive their refunds in two installments, the second of which will be paid no later than 16 months down the line. The remaining 7,000 people and some companies will receive their refunds in three payments, the last of which will be paid within 28 months,” he explained.

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