| In discharging his duties, a tax agent shall always adhere to the following: |
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| 1. |
Integrity |
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1.1 |
An agent shall be well mannered,
honest, sincere and truthful in his work and always give full cooperation when
dealing with the IRB.
In handling the case of his client, he shall furnish only information which, to
the best of his knowledge and belief, is correct. |
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1.2 |
He shall refrain from using information
acquired in the course of his work for his own advantage or that of his family.
Such information is classified material and shall be dealt with as
confidential. It shall not be disclosed to any other party without specific
authority.
"Classified material" means returns/documents/ information that is acquired by
a classified person as defined in Section 138(5), Income Tax Act 1967. A
"classified person" means any person or his employee who has access to
classified material when representing a client in taxation matters. |
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1.3 |
He shall accurately inform/advise his client on the
progress of his case. |
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1.4 |
He shall not misuse any monies entrusted by his
client for purposes of payment of tax. Proof of payment of tax shall be given
to his client for purposes of record. |
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1.5 |
He shall not enter into any arrangement with an
unqualified person to endorse the work of that unqualified person. |
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| 2. |
Competency |
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2.1 |
He shall always strive for professional competency
and exhibit a high degree of skill in discharging his duties. A tax agent must
therefore be conversant with the tax laws/practices and constantly ensure that
his technical knowledge is up-to-date. In addition he is also expected to keep
abreast with the requirements of the IRB, which may be announced from time to
time. |
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2.2 |
Staff members of a tax agent must also be well
trained in relevant aspects of tax laws and regulations so as to ensure that
work performed by them also meet the required standard. |
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2.3 |
He shall to the best of his ability, ensure that
all returns and tax computations submitted are properly completed with the
required supporting statements and schedules, and such submissions are in
compliance with the guidelines issued by the IRB. |
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2.4 |
He shall only undertake cases that are within his
experience and capability. This is to avoid any substandard work being
performed and undue delay in the finalisation of the cases. |
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2.5 |
When making appeals against any assessment, proper
care shall be taken to ensure that such appeals are based on valid grounds. |
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2.6 |
He is expected to give prompt and complete replies
to enquiries from the IRB. |
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| 3. |
Professional Advice |
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3.1 |
In giving professional advice to his clients, the
tax agent shall always have regard to the prevailing tax laws. |
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3.2 |
He shall impress upon his clients the various
obligations and duties as taxpayers under the tax laws and educate the clients
on the importance of maintaining proper records of all transactions especially
in business cases. |
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3.3 |
He shall also advise his clients of the necessity
to make sufficient provisions for payment of tax as well as the importance of
keeping to the instalment plans for payment of tax so as to avoid late payment
penalties. |
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| *Compliance with this code of ethics will be used as one of the
criteria for approving and renewing the licence of the tax agent. |
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