IN an effort to recover more unpaid taxes, Government has amended the Income Tax Act to reduce the interest on late payments from 40 per cent to 20 per cent.

Minister of Information, Daryl Vaz, made the disclosure at yesterday’s post-cabinet press briefing at Jamaica House.

With a tax compliance rate of under 50 per cent, this is the latest effort by Government to lure more revenues into the tax coffers.

A tax amnesty programme was introduced last year in which persons not paying tax were encouraged to voluntarily register, file tax returns and pay any outstanding amounts for the years 2008 and 2009 relating to Income Tax, General Consumption Tax (GCT), Special Consumption Tax (SCT), PAYE and/or Education Tax.

Persons were also allowed to regularise their business operations and become tax-compliant, without any questions being asked about previous years.

At the press briefing, Vaz also said changes to the GCT Act were made which will affect imported services.