Major Daniel S. Ablorh-Quarcoo (Rtd), Commissioner of Internal Revenue Service (IRS) on Tuesday said religious bodies that engaged in activities of trade, employment or investment are taxable under the tax law.
"For example, where religious bodies which have properties rent out
or leases part of the property or the whole property and collects rent, the income accruing to the religious body is considered as income from investment and therefore taxable."
Maj Ablorh-Quarcoo said this at a day's seminar organized jointly by IRS and the Value Added Tax (VAT) Service on income tax laws for religious bodies with the theme: "Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's."
Some of the topics treated were "obligations of religious bodies in Ghana's taxation" "role of the Value Added Tax Service in Tax Administration in Ghana" and "overview of the tax system and Tax Administration in Ghana".
Maj Ablorh-Quarcoo said the revenue agencies greatly appreciate the zeal
of the religious bodies in complementing the effort of government in the development process through the establishment and running of first and second cycle and health institutions."
He said, however, they have observed that a number of religious bodies
have taken advantage of the fact that incomes earned by religious bodies were exempted from tax.
"Section 94 defines an exempt organization to mean a person (a) who or
that is and functions as: i. a religious, charitable or educational institution of a public character (b) a body of persons formed for the purpose of promoting social or sporting amenities."
The Commissioner said; "This means that a religious, charitable or educational institution which is not of a public character is not exempt from tax on any income earned by that institution and therefore subject to tax."
Maj Ablorh-Quarcoo stated that a religious leader who writes religious books and put them on sale on the market and religious body which decides to
buy vehicle to run transport or buys a block making machine or does an investment in a bakery; whatever income that were accrued from these transactions were taxable.
In his presentation, Mr Kwasi Bobie Ansah of IRS urged religious bodies
to disclose all their incomes that are not related to their core function of providing ecclesiastical services and accordingly pay taxes on them.
He quoted the Bible saying; "James 4:17: Therefore, if one knows how to
do what is right and yet does not do it, it is a sin for him."