NEWS REPORT: TAX APPEAL TRIBUNAL ADOPTS (TAT), LAUNCHES E-FILING, CASE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM
By: Emmanuel Adefeso Esq.
The Tax Appeal Tribunal (TAT) has launched an e-filing and case management system to improve justice delivery in the Tax sector. The application launched will manage the entire case process, from the point of filling to the point when the case is decided with the integration of a digital platform for the payment of necessary fees.
At the launch of the e-filing and case management system, the coordinating secretary of the Tax Appeal Tribunal, Oniyangi Hajara Esq, said that the adoption of the electronic filing system was a calculated effort to improve access to the tribunal and to mitigate any obstacles associated with justice delivery that the essence of the tribunal as the first point of call on tax disputes do not warrant any delay. She stated that “The main reason of adopting e-filing for the tribunal is for people to be able to have access to the tribunal within the comfort of their homes or their offices not necessarily having to travel many kilometers to file tax matter. The software deployed captures every litigation process with enough flexibility from start to finish. We are proud for taking the lead among others and we advise other tribunal and superior courts to adopt this technology for the sake of the administration of justice.”
The event was witnessed by the Tribunal Secretary, Management and judicial staff; and questions were asked from the IT consultant, 4tune Technologies team lead, Fatai Abiodun who explained the workings and the flexibility of the software in the clearest terms. Litigants can now file their matter/process via the secured online platform.
This innovation is coming as a part of the reforms of the tax system in Nigeria. Tax Appeal Tribunal (TAT) was set up by the Federal Government to adjudicate on all tax disputes arising from operations of the various Tax Laws as spelt out in the Fifth Schedule to the FIRS (Establishment) Act 2007. Pursuant to the Tax Appeal Tribunals Establishment Order 2009, TAT was established in eight cities to cover the six geo-political zones namely: Abuja, Lagos, Ibadan, Benin, Enugu, Kaduna, Jos, and Bauchi, and a Coordinating Secretariat located in Abuja.
Indeed, tax law and administration is the central part of modern public finance and the importance of taxation arises from the fact that it is by far the most significant source of government revenue. Therefore, the importance of an effective tax law and adjudication mechanism cannot be over-emphasized. It is a remarkable feat that the institution charged with tax disputes and adjudication has leveraged on technology to build public trust and confidence in Nigeria Tax system. This shows that the TAT cannot be insulated from the digital revolution that is gradually being implemented in the Nigeria Judiciary.
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