BY JOHN HOUANIHAU
WHILE most registered businesses continue to operate normally – a recent notice issued by the Commissioner of Inland Revenue urged all formal businesses operated in the country to install and use a Cash Register or Point of Sale machine.
It has emerged that a majority of formal businesses operated in the Solomon Islands have not installed or used a cash register or EFTPOS (electronic funds transfer at the point of sale) or Point of Sale machine – a system for paying for the purchase of goods and services.
This means businesses (retailers, wholesalers, and other business service providers) who do not currently have either a cash register, EFTPOS, or POS machine, have until July this year to install one and commence using it, according to the formal notice from the directive of the Commissioner of Inland Revenue under the Inland Revenue Division of the Solomon Islands government.
Farmset Store Limited in Honiara, Salesperson Florence described the formal notice made by the Commissioner of Inland Revenue as a timely call for the business sector in the country.
“Cash register for instance play an important role in the process of counting, reconciling receipts and accounts for all of the day’s transaction. It makes sure everything adds up.
“This initiative will also help customers as the device will automatically print a receipt after a customer register the value of items he/she purchasing.
“This means the cash register will provide a receipt to the customer with the references about his/her purchase. So I think this call is timely in this business transition of the country.
“Setting up the right record-keeping system as a cash register for local business in the country will help the work of businesses efficiently, meet legal requirements and strengthen customer and staff relationships,’’ she told Sunday Isles.
The Commissioner stated in the notice that: “As Commissioner of the Inland Revenue, in the exercise of the powers given to me by the income Tax Act (CAP 123) and the Sales Tax Cap 125, I today give notice that all formal retail businesses, being those businesses whose annual sales is more than $600,000SBD, selling goods or providing services to the public are required to install a CASH REGISTER in their shops.
“The use of a calculator as commonly used by these businesses is not an adequate record as no written record is produced. The only adequate records are written records either physical such as cash books, ledger, and journals, or electronic such as those produced by a cash register, or an EFTPOS or a Point of Sale (POS) machine.
“Businesses are required to keep the rolls tapes from the cash registers for a period of 3 months and may dispose of them after three months provided that the wholesale or retail business has reconciled the totals on tapes with actual cash sales and bankings for that period in the cash book. The cash or other financials (ledgers, journals, etc.) must be kept for seven (7) years.
“For those businesses who currently do not have either a CASH REGISTER, EFTPOS, or POS machine, you have until the end of July 2021 to install one and commence using them. It is important that if you do not have a CASH REGISTER or POS machine that you order it now to give adequate time to have delivered and train your staff as to how to use it,” Commissioner of Inland Revenue stated.
