Taxpayer Survey 2023
The Taxpayer Survey is conducted once every two years to get an in-depth understanding of taxpayers' satisfaction with IRAS’ services and obtain feedback on IRAS' policies, regulations and services. IRAS has commissioned an independent research company, Blackbox Research Pte Ltd, to conduct the Taxpayer Survey 2023.
If you received a hardcopy invitation letter from 17 April to 13 July 2023, you have been selected as part of a random sampling process to participate in this survey. The letters will contain unique login details (including a personalised QR code) for participants to complete the online survey. Alternatively, participants may also complete the hardcopy questionnaire and mail it back to Blackbox Research.
How will my responses to the Taxpayer Survey be used?
All responses received will be kept strictly confidential and reported on an aggregated basis. Individuals will not be identified in the findings of the study.
Protect yourself from scams
Never disclose your unique survey link and password to others. IRAS and Blackbox Research will not ask for your personal information (e.g. bank account or credit card details, SMS or email one-time passwords, Singpass login credentials, etc.), or send any hyperlinks or QR codes through SMS, WhatsApp or Telegram for the purpose of the Taxpayer Survey. If you receive a suspicious message purportedly from IRAS or Blackbox Research regarding the Taxpayer Survey, ensure that you verify the sender's identity by contacting Blackbox Research.
For more information, please refer to IRAS' Scam Advisory.
Who should I contact with regards to the survey?
If you have any queries on the survey or would like to verify the authenticity of a suspicious message, please contact Blackbox Research Pte Ltd from Monday to Friday, 9am – 6pm:
We thank all survey respondents for their time and valuable feedback provided.
2022 Survey on Publication of Advance Rulings
In 2019, IRAS implemented a framework to publish summaries of advance rulings for income tax and goods and services tax in anonymised forms. The objective is to enhance the taxpayers’ understanding of IRAS’ interpretation and application of tax laws in specific scenarios. IRAS will publish a summary of advance ruling in respect of applications made on or after 1 May 2019 if the applicant has given consent for the publication and the issue that is the subject of the ruling request does not relate to Advance Pricing Arrangements.
IRAS conducted a survey from 12 August 2022 to 26 August 2022 to seek views and feedback from the public on the effectiveness of the publication of summaries of advance rulings and whether IRAS should continue to publish such summaries. We thank all respondents for their time and valuable feedback provided.
Taxpayer Survey 2021
The Taxpayer Survey is conducted once every two years to get an in-depth understanding of taxpayers' satisfaction with IRAS’ services and obtain feedback on IRAS' policies, regulations and services. IRAS has commissioned an independent research company, Blackbox Research Pte Ltd, to conduct the Taxpayer Survey 2021.
From 30 April 2021, invitation letters will be sent to randomly selected taxpayers across various tax types. The letters will contain unique login details (including a personalised QR code) for participants to complete the online survey. Alternatively, participants may also complete the hardcopy questionnaire and mail it back to Blackbox Research.
How will my responses to the Taxpayer Survey be used?
All responses received will be kept strictly confidential and reported on an aggregated basis. Individuals will not be identified in the findings of the study.
We hope that the findings from the survey will give us greater insights on how we may partner the community in nation-building and inclusive growth.
Taxpayer Survey 2019
The Taxpayer Survey is conducted once every two years to get an in-depth understanding of taxpayers' satisfaction with IRAS’ services and obtain feedback on IRAS' policies, regulations and services. IRAS has commissioned an independent research company, Forbes Research Pte Ltd, to conduct the Taxpayer Survey 2019.
Who are the participants for Taxpayer Survey 2019?
Respondents to the survey are randomly selected across various tax types so that they will be representative of Singapore's tax-paying population.
How will the survey be conducted?
Invitation letters will be sent out to the randomly selected taxpayers from mid Apr 2019. The letters will contain unique log-in details (including a personalised QR code) for participants to complete the online survey. Alternatively, participants may also complete the hardcopy questionnaire and mail it back to IRAS.
How will my responses to the Taxpayer Survey be used?
All responses received will be kept strictly confidential and reported on an aggregated basis. Individuals will not be identified in the findings of the study.
We hope that the findings from the survey will give us greater insights on how we may partner the community in nation-building and inclusive growth.
2018 Survey on IRAS' Publishing of Advance Rulings
In 2016, IRAS commissioned the Study of the Tax Ecosystem and Practices in Singapore (“STEPS”), with the objective of conducting a holistic review of the tax ecosystem, and recommending strategies to achieve goals, including developing Singapore into a thought leader for taxation and positioning Singapore as an advocate of fair and ethical taxation. One of the STEPS recommendations to improve the certainty of Singapore’s tax regime is for IRAS to publish advance rulings issued by the Comptroller of Income Tax/Comptroller of Goods and Services Tax, and IRAS is considering whether to implement the recommendation.
IRAS conducted a survey from 19 March 2018 to 30 April 2018 to seek views from the public on whether advance rulings should be published, and how IRAS should publish advance rulings if IRAS does so, while protecting confidentiality of taxpayers’ identities and business arrangements. We thank all respondents for their time and valuable feedback provided.
Taxpayer Survey 2017
The Taxpayer Survey is conducted once every two years to get an in-depth understanding of taxpayers' satisfaction with IRAS’ services and obtain feedback on IRAS' policies, regulations and services. IRAS has commissioned an independent research company, Forbes Research Pte Ltd, to conduct the Taxpayer Survey 2017.
Who are the participants for Taxpayer Survey 2017?
Respondents to the survey are randomly selected across various tax types so that they will be representative of Singapore's tax-paying population.
How will the survey be conducted?
Invitation letters will be sent out to the randomly selected taxpayers from mid Apr 2017. The letters will contain unique log-in details for participants to complete the online survey. Alternatively, participants may also complete the hardcopy questionnaire and mail it back to IRAS.
How will my responses to the Taxpayer Survey be used?
All responses received will be kept strictly confidential and reported on an aggregated basis. Individuals will not be identified in the findings of the study.
We hope that the findings from the survey will give us greater insights on how we may partner the community in nation-building and inclusive growth.
Taxpayer Survey 2015
The Taxpayer Survey is conducted once every two years to get an in-depth understanding of taxpayers' satisfaction with IRAS' services and obtain feedback on IRAS' policies, regulations and services. IRAS has commissioned an independent research company, Beacon Consulting Pte Ltd, to conduct the Taxpayer Survey 2015.
Who are the participants for Taxpayer Survey 2015?
Respondents to the survey are randomly selected across various tax segments so that they will be representative of Singapore's taxpaying population.
How will the survey be conducted?
Invitation letters will be sent out to the randomly selected taxpayers from April 2015. The letters will contain unique log-in details for participants to complete the online survey. Alternatively, they may also complete the enclosed hardcopy questionnaire and send it back to IRAS via the self-addressed envelope provided.
How will my responses to the Taxpayer Survey be used?
All responses received will be kept in the strictest confidence and reported on a group basis. Individuals will not be identified in the findings of the study.
We thank you for your support and contribution to this survey.
Taxpayer Compliance Perception Survey 2014
IRAS is conducting the 2014 Taxpayer Compliance Perception Survey from August to October 2014. The purpose of the survey is to help us better understand taxpayers’ attitudes towards tax compliance and obtain feedback on IRAS’ compliance programmes. The survey will take approximately 15 minutes to complete.
Who are the participants for the Taxpayer Compliance Perception Survey 2014?
Randomly selected taxpayers across various tax segments will receive invitation letters from August 2014. The letters will contain unique login details for participants to complete the survey. Letter and telephone reminders to participants will also be made subsequently. Respondents to the survey are randomly selected so that they are representative of Singapore's taxpaying population.
How will my information be used?
IRAS has commissioned an independent research company, Nexus Link Pte Ltd, to conduct this online survey. Information collected will be kept strictly confidential and analysed only at an aggregated level. Individuals will not be identified in the findings of the study.
We thank you for your support and contribution to this survey.
2014 Survey on IRAS' Publishing of Advance Rulings
IRAS conducted a public survey between 4 February 2014 and 31 March 2014, to gather views from members of the public on the usefulness of publishing IRAS’ advance rulings on IRAS’ website.
We would like to thank the 61 respondents for their time and valuable feedback provided.
The majority of the respondents shared the view that it would be useful to have the advance rulings published on IRAS’ website. This would provide greater transparency on the Comptroller’s interpretation of tax laws and serve as a general reference on tax rules. However, over one third of them have expressed reservations to having the advance rulings issued to them published on the IRAS website.
The main concern cited was that publishing the advance rulings could lead to identification of the taxpayer, or leakage of sensitive information which would affect the taxpayer’s competitive edge. This group of respondents also indicated that they would not want rulings that applied to them to be published, and requested that IRAS seek permission before publishing any such ruling. Some respondents felt that removing certain details of case to avoid identification could limit the usefulness of the published rulings.
Outcome
IRAS has carefully considered the survey results and all the feedback received. To protect the confidentiality of taxpayers’ identities and business arrangements, IRAS will not publish the advance rulings. IRAS will continue to issue e-Tax Guides to set out the tax treatment on general tax issues. Where useful or appropriate, IRAS will incorporate scenarios from certain advance rulings into relevant e-Tax Guides, with the aim to provide greater tax certainty and transparency on the Comptroller’s interpretation of tax laws.
We thank the respondents for their comments.