Manama: As part of ongoing government efforts to enhance and re-engineer services, the National Bureau for Revenue (NBR) announced the development of its service for submitting review requests to the Review and Grievances Section.
According to Bahrain News Agency, the new service allows Value Added Tax (VAT) registered individuals to file review requests with the NBR's Review and Grievances Section regarding violations of the Value Added Tax Law. This service excludes certain administrative penalties related to other NBR procedures and is accessible through the NBR's electronic portal. The streamlined procedures are designed to enhance procedural fairness and transparency, contributing to quicker decisions on requests based on objective criteria.
Under the improved service, the processing time for requests has been reduced from 90 days to 60 days. This reduction is part of the service's re-engineering process, which simplifies the review process and accelerates request processing. The aim is to improve the experience for VAT-registered individuals by reducing the service-level agreement period.
Rana Ibrahim Faqeehi, Chief Executive Officer of the NBR, highlighted that the development of the review request service demonstrates the NBR's commitment to enhancing services in a way that balances procedural efficiency with fairness and transparency in its decisions. The service allows registered individuals to submit review requests through clear and systematic procedures, ensuring that requests are examined efficiently and impartially, in line with legal provisions. This approach is intended to boost confidence in the NBR's decisions.
Faqeehi added that the re-engineering initiative reflects the NBR's ongoing efforts to enhance and develop its services to meet the needs of registered individuals, improve the quality of government services, and align with best practices.
In line with government efforts to develop and re-engineer services, over 1,300 government services have been documented, translated, and published, with approximately 800 services undergoing development and re-engineering across various sectors. These efforts are informed by proposals and feedback from the National System for Suggestions and Complaints, Tawasul, investor feedback, and secret shopper reports evaluating government services. Additionally, guidance manuals and service level agreements have been launched to support these initiatives.
These efforts aim to improve procedural efficiency, enhance service quality, strengthen the beneficiary experience, and support the government's digital transformation journey.