The Essence of the Annual Tax Declaration of an Individual
The annual tax declaration is the report of an individual on the computation of a tax established by the Tax Code. Georgian tax legislation determines precisely who is obliged to file a declaration, within what deadlines and how errors in a declaration are corrected. This page explains these rules so that your reporting is timely and accurate and the consequences of late filing are avoided.
Who Must File the Annual Declaration
An income tax declaration is submitted to the tax authority by 1 April of the year following the reporting year by resident individuals whose income is not taxed in Georgia at the source of payment. The same deadline applies to enterprises and to nonresident individuals whose income from a source in Georgia is not taxed at the source. Special deadlines exist for special cases: an entrepreneur individual who ceases economic activity in Georgia files the declaration within 30 working days; a person in liquidation — within 5 working days from the registration of the start of the liquidation process; where a bankruptcy regime is opened, unfiled declarations are submitted within 15 days of the court ruling entering into legal force. A person who pays salaries monthly and withholds tax from them must submit, monthly and no later than the 15th day of the month following the reporting month, a declaration on the salary amounts paid and the tax withheld. An individual who is not obliged to file may nevertheless submit a declaration with a request for the recalculation and refund of tax — this is often the way to recover an overpaid amount.
The Formal Rules of the Declaration
In the tax declaration the total tax liability is computed in whole lari, and a liability below 1 lari is reduced to zero. The declaration may be submitted in person at the tax authority, by insured postal delivery or electronically. One rule is important: if a person does not submit a declaration, it is considered that a declaration with zero tax was submitted, and a declaration subsequently submitted for the same period is treated as late. The forms of the declaration and the rules for completing and electronic filing are determined by the Minister of Finance of Georgia.