An upgraded system capable of handling income tax collection has been launched in Vanuatu.
The acting director of Customs and Inland Revenue says vehicle registration and VAT are among the forms of revenue the new RMS 7 software, which has been implemented by a New Zealand company called Data Torque, will gather.
Benjamin Malas says customs revenue is reducing and so the focus on domestic tax is increasing.
He wouldn't comment on whether the system will eventually be used to collect income tax but he did say a sound system was a necessity before any further tax reforms.
"Make sure that our compliance controls are effective and our services sufficient to the general public in terms of how fast does the system work in which we serve our clients. These are the very important things that we now focus on at the moment. But yes, indeed, the RMS 7, it's quite a big advance in new technology therefore I think in the future it may be committed to any other form of taxes, these are what we have in mind."
Benjamin Malas in Vanuatu.
