Definition of Tax Agency
Miscellanea / / July 04, 2021
By Javier Navarro, in Aug. 2015
The Tax Agency is the state body responsible for managing and processing taxes for citizens and companies. Although the official name is the Tax Agency in most Latin American countries (Mexico, Argentina, Chile, Peru or Spain), in popular language it receives other names: hacienda, treasury, public treasury and others.
The general idea of the Tax Agency
The tax system of a nation has the function of collecting taxes periodically in order to satisfy some needs of the whole of the population. Thus, the payment of taxes serves for the maintenance of a series of basic services, such as education, health, infrastructure, etc.
The Tax Agency fulfills two fundamental functions: social justice among citizens and the redistribution of wealth. And as a general criterion, the principle that those who have more pay more taxes apply.
Any tax system has two relevant aspects: that nobody likes to pay taxes (the same word indicates that it is an imposition) and, on the other hand, a developed nation needs an efficient and fair tax system so that society can organize itself and cope with its needs.
Specific functions of the Tax Agency
Citizens and companies that have the obligation to pay taxes are familiar with the annual income statement, which includes all a series of aspects to consider: the documentation that must be presented at the offices of the tax agency, what aspects are tax deductible and what deductions are contemplated, what is the term of presentation of the declaration, deferrals of payment, etc.
Online procedures
In recent years, information and the processing of tax obligations are framed in the digital age. Thus, the Tax Agency has a portal for Internet in which the citizen can know his obligations and interact directly with the corresponding administrative agencies. This technological advance has meant an important change in several senses:
1) access to information is direct and fast,
2) the possibility of making an appointment in advance for the presentation of the annual declaration,
3) resolution of doubts and
4) simplification of all processes.
The set of online procedures between citizens and the Tax Agency are carried out through digital certification. The digital certificate serves to guarantee the authenticity of a user in a web portal and depends on a authority certification, an intermediary entity that is responsible for issuing digital certificates.
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