Assessing Your Tax Return

The IRD will go through a process of inspecting your tax return to determine documents and calculations are valid and accurate; the IRDwill then issue you a notice of assessment, which shows the details of your tax refund or liability.

You should check your notice of assessment and inform the IRD if it has any errors.  If you think you made a mistake on your return, you can file an amended return through the Objection process.

Notice of Assessment

The notice of assessment the IRD sends you is an itemised account of the amount of tax you owe on your taxable income. It also contains other details that are not part of the assessment, such as the refund amount owed to you, attached separately as a deposit cheque; or the amount you owe the IRD as a liability, plus all interests and penalties owed as per the date of assessment.

When you receive your notice of assessment, you should check that everything is correct, as well as any comments in terms of missing documents. You have a small window of opportunity to request a re-assessment via submitting an Objection Form.

Objections

Upon receipt of the notice of assessment, you are advised to check the amount of income assessed, allowances and deductions allowed, and the Assessment's Note (if any) to understand the basis of the assessment and the reasons of disallowing your claim for allowances or deductions. If you disagree with an assessment, you may lodge an Objection and Appeal.

If you wish to dispute the assessment, you must fill out an Objections Form and stating precisely the grounds of the objection along with any supporting documents within the prescribed time limit. The notice of objection must be received by the Inland Revenue Department within 60 Days after the date of issue of the notice of assessment. Late objections will only be considered if the Comptroller of the Inland Revenue Department is satisfied.

Appeals

If after the Objections process, you are still not satisfied with the re-assessment, you do have the option of appealing. The Appeal process begins within the Department where mechanisms for resolving disputes are designed to do so in an impartial and timely manner.

1st Step

Taxpayers who do not understand or who disagree with a notice of assessment or reassessment should first contact the nearest tax office for an explanation. They can do so in writing or in person.

2nd Step

If differences persist after the initial explanations, the taxpayer may file an objection in writing to the Comptroller. The notice of objection must be filed within thirty (30) days from the date the notice of assessment or reassessment has been deemed served (7 days after the date it was posted).The objection must state the reasons for the objection as well as any other relevant facts.

3rd Step

If still dissatisfied with the outcome of the objection, the taxpayer may appeal in writing within thirty (30) days to the Appeal Commissioners.

 The Appeals Commission is contacted via mailing address:

Secretary of Tribunal
c/o The Attorney General’s Chambers
Legislative Drafting Department
Francis Compton Building
Waterfront, Castries

The Refunds Process

Refunds As Offsets

If you owe money to the IRD because of a delinquent or outstanding debt, the IRD can offset that liability with any available refund payments; the IRD may also withhold the entire amount to satisfy the debt. The offsetting will be detailed in your Notice of Assessment. You can also request that your refund be used to satisfy your or another taxpayer's liability. Please make such requests via a formal letter addressed to the Comptroller of the IRD.

Emergency Refund Requests

The IRD allows for the early issuance of tax refunds due to an emergency or urgent situation for the taxpayer or his/her dependents. There are only THREE situations deemed as emergencies:

• Educational expense
• Medical emergency
• Permanent emigration from Saint Lucia

You are to make this request via a formal letter addressed to the Comptroller, along with documented proof of that emergency, such as a medical invoice or bill, tuition fees statement, one-way ticket/itinerary. 

Below is the current list of unclaimed refund cheques. Simply select by letter of Last Name