Ashford W. Meikle, Business Reporter

Ingrid Chambers, managing director of West Indies Trust Company, says the Finance Ministry should develop a payment schedule for outstanding witholding tax refunds. - File

The Ministry of Finance has began issuing refund cheques to pension funds, but not at a pace fast enough to appease some investment managers.

"Well, we got our money but I understand some persons have not got all they were hoping for," a pension fund manager told Wednesday Business yesterday.

The ministry has not commented on the size of its debt to pension funds, but it is estimated that the liability amounts to billions in unpaid refunds of withholding taxes on their investments.

"I understand they sent out instructions that all outstanding amounts up to May should be paid promptly. I think things are progressing but, of course, it depends on the cash flow," said the executive, who noted the need for patience.

"We hardly get back the refund every month."

Pace of the refund

But some investment managers, like West Indies Trust Company's Ingrid Chambers, are still not satisfied with the pace of the refund.

"We got some but not what we expected. They need to have us on a payment schedule. They did say they would pay up until the end of September so I would imagine they are having a difficult time," she said

Witco got $304 million in refunds, just about a quarter of the $1.4 billion that Chambers said was outstanding to her company.

Pension funds became eligible for withholding tax in 1999, but the Finance Ministry has been tardy in making refunds despite a fast-track window for payments to be made within 45 days after the due date.

Some of the payments are three years in arrears, which pension fund managers said was tantamount to lost income, as well as forced borrowing by Government that helped to swell the stock of domestic debt.

The ministry in its defence, however, said some of the delay was due to incomplete information from pension fund managers, as well as lags in processing of payments.

The current process, which the ministry said it would have reviewed by the end of September, requires the verification of claims by one agency, which then sends them to another revenue agency for payment.

Up to yesterday, it was unclear whether the ministry had held to its commitment. MOF head of communications Cordell Braham said he he would direct Wednesday Business' queries to Finance Minister Dr. Omar Davies.

- ashford.meikle@gleanerjm.com