The Director-General of the Income and Sales Tax Department, Hussam Abu Ali, announced that the total value of tax refunds disbursed during the past year, 2023, amounted to approximately JOD 90 million. Individual income tax refunds totaled about JOD 25 million, while sales tax refunds for establishments reached about JOD 65 million.

Abu Ali added that among the reforms being implemented by the Income and Sales Tax Department in Jordan, there is a focus on expediting the issuance of refunds. This includes amending the Sales Tax Law to accelerate the disbursement of sales tax refunds, resulting in the clearance of all accumulated sales tax refunds from previous years.

He emphasized that all sales tax refunds for 2022 and earlier, which had completed auditing, were disbursed, along with refunds whose auditing was completed before September of the past year 2023. Consequently, all audited and finalized sales tax refunds until September of the previous year 2023 were disbursed and transferred to bank accounts. As of the year 2024, there are no accumulated sales tax refunds from previous years. The refunds currently under review are those that completed auditing in the last quarter of 2023.

Abu Ali further clarified that among the tax department's reforms, electronic auditing utilizing artificial intelligence has expedited the tax auditing process for submitted tax returns. This has shortened the time between the taxpayer submitting their tax return and it being audited by the tax auditor, thereby accelerating the refund process.

The Director-General further added that as part of the department's policy in issuing income tax refunds, priority is given to employees and users who accurately declare their income. The methodology followed by the department prioritizes employees and users, and the criteria for issuing refunds depend on the speed of the taxpayer's submission of the tax return. The earlier the tax return is submitted within the tax period and its auditing procedures completed, the higher the priority for receiving these refunds.

Abu Ali noted that disbursing refunds requires the department to ensure that the entity or company that withheld income tax has remitted it to the Income and Sales Tax Department on behalf of the taxpayer. Many taxpayers demand refunds that have not been received by the department, necessitating a delay in disbursing refunds until the remittance procedures are completed by the withholding entity.

He added that disbursing refunds from public funds in the state treasury requires the department to conduct effective and competent audits and ensure the validity of taxpayers' claims for these refunds.

He announced that effective auditing procedures and the use of electronic technologies have enabled the detection of cases of invalid refund requests, requiring the department to take legal action against violators. Disbursing these refunds has enabled the clearance of accumulated refunds from previous years and ensures that all necessary auditing procedures are followed to safeguard public funds.