The Establishment of the Guyana Revenue Authority

Following consultation with the Inter-American Centre of Tax Administration (CIAT), the Guyana Revenue Authority was established with the passing of the Revenue Authority Act #13 of 1996 and became operational on January 27, 2000. The Departments were renamed Internal Revenue and Customs and Trade Administration, each being managed by a Commissioner reporting directly to the Commissioner-General. The newly established GRA retained to a great extent the original structures of the Inland Revenue and Customs and Excise Departments. However, certain Common Service Divisions were created to enable the organization to carry out its mandate. These Divisions included:

• Human Resources

• Management Services

• Field Audit

• Legal Services

• Internal Audit

• Planning, Communication and Operational Procedures

Over the years the Guyana Revenue Authority also embarked on numerous training programmes that have thus far realized the training of over 600 staff members. Training covered many areas including, Leadership and Management Skills, VAT, Customer Relations, Customs Officer I and Supervisory Management.

As the Agency developed, so too were the training needs and these encompassed areas inclusive of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), the monitoring and control of ozone depleting substances, the Multilateral Trading System and the use of firearms, Maritime Law Enforcement, Border Security, Detection of Counterfeit Currency, Aviation Security and Detection of drugs, explosives and chemical. The various training programmes have positively impacted the agency; as such plans are in place to continue training in a number of other areas.

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