Vol. 533 No. 3
167 Mr. R. Bruton asked the Minister for Finance if he will arrange for a free telephone facility to be operated by the Revenue Commissioners in view of the enormous confusion among members of the public with the new format of the tax free allowance certificate. [8635/01]
I am informed by the Revenue Commissioners that they are making every effort to explain the changes in the tax system to PAYE taxpayers and to employers.
The completion of the tax credits system represents a significant change and initially some members of the public may well experience some difficulty in coming to grips with the new arrangements. However, I have no doubt that once the public gets used to the system they will recognise it as a major improvement.
Each year at this time, the Revenue Commissioners issue notices of entitlements to every employee in the country. This year over two million notices were issued. Although full details are not available, Revenue report that the volume of business in PAYE tax offices is running at roughly last year's levels. Direct contacts with taxpayers in tax offices or on the phone are taking up slightly more time than last year. This is to be expected but there is some evidence that the postal queries are slightly down in number.
The Revenue Commissioners have produced a detailed explanatory leaflet for employees, which contains a considerable amount of information to explain the changes in the system. This leaflet was sent to each employee or assessable spouse, in the case of jointly assessed couples. Employees seeking to understand the changes will undoubtedly need to take some time to read the leaflet carefully and they can contact their local PAYE tax office if they have queries.
The Revenue Commissioners have also produced a video and CD-ROM explaining the changes necessary in payroll systems. They have issued this and supporting documentation to all employers to ensure that they deduct the correct tax from employees from 6 April next.
