So Much for Ease of Doing Business

The Inland Revenue Department recently announced that all individuals over the age of 18 are required to obtain a Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN). While this can be done online with relative ease, obtaining a duplicate TIN certificate is an entirely different matter.

In addition to a formal request letter, the following documents are required:

1. Copy of the NIC of the signatories

2.An affidavit

3. Certified copies of Company Forms No. 1 and 20 certified by the Registrar of Companies

4. A written undertaking that the original certificate will be returned if found

One is left wondering: why such red tape for something as basic as issuing a duplicate of an existing document?

If Sri Lanka is truly committed to improving its ranking in the Ease of Doing Business index, such outdated, bureaucratic procedures must be urgently reviewed. Perhaps it is time to extend the scope of the “Clean Sri Lanka” initiative to include a cleanup of government processes that frustrate citizens and hinder economic activity.

Upali Weerasinghe