Business Licence process accelerated

The Director of Customs is now obliged to issue a business license to a person within five working days from the date which that particular business entrepreneur receives his receipt of payment.

This was made possible in the recent passing of the Business Licence (Amendment) Act [CAP 249], primarily addressing the lengthy process of issuing a business and other matters related to this process and provides for a more internationally recognised accounting term in relation to the calculation of turnover tax paid by commercial banks under this Act.

In tabling the Bill Minister for Finance and Economic Management Moana Carcasses said this is in response to the complaints from business houses.
Opposition whip MP Patrick Crowby commended the amendment after 31 years of independence to accelerate the process of acquiring a business licence catering for businesses and revenue.

Efate Rural MP Bakoa Kaltongga asked, whether the government could give comfort where should an occasion rise when five days after a receipt was issued the person failed the requirements and told the government would he be reimbursed?

Minister Carcasses responded that the system in place where his funds will be reimbursed.

Santo MP Sela Molisa questioned amendments under Category F1 (Commercial Banks) in which the words “foreign exchange earnings” were deleted and substituted it with “exchange difference”, where an “exchange difference” is the difference resulting from translating a given number of units of one currency into another currency at different exchange rates.

He questioned the difference and if there will be further amendments to the Reserve Bank because this would only be applicable to Commercial Banks.
The explanation was these are technical words used by commercial banks today.

The amendments made provision: (I) for a person may proceed to operate a business upon receiving a receipt for payment of the relevant business licence fee under the Act , (II) requires the Director to issue a business licence to a person within 5 working days from the date on which the person receives the receipt.

The Director may refuse to issue a business licence to a person who holds a receipt …if the person fails to comply with any requirements for obtaining a business licence under this Act or any other Act and makes it clear that a person must cease to operate a business once that person is being informed by the Director of his or her refusal to issue the business licence.