. KATHMANDU: The government has initiated a process to resolve the disputes related to telecom service charges, royalties and the Rural Telecommunication Development Fund (RTDF) that have been pending for many years by the Internet Service Provider (ISP) companies.
The Ministry
of Information and Communications has intensified discussions with stakeholders to resolve the long-standing dispute related to arrears amount, tax determination and license renewal. On this occasion, Minister for Communications and Information Technology, Dr. Bikram Timilsina held a discussion with the office-bearers of the Internet Service Providers Association of Nepal (ISPAN) and clarified that the amount owed by the law would be recovered at any cost.
Minister Timilsina said although the government could review the tax or fee fixed on the service provider in an unfair manner, it could not escape the obligation stipulated by the law.
If the tax or fee is determined contrary to the existing law, then the government can review it. But the amount owed by the law cannot always be kept in limbo,” he said, “The government will address the problem if there is a genuine problem, otherwise the arrears recovery process will proceed.” “
The current fiscal year has been taken as the year of reforms in the telecommunications sector and the policy and administrative problems that have not been resolved for a long time will be resolved. He also urged the service providers to submit in writing the problems facing them and the issues that need to be improved.
The Nepal Telecommunication Authority (NTA) has already said that the license of Internet Service Provider Companies (ISPs) that do not pay dues cannot be renewed.
During the discussion, Minister Timilsina also clarified that service operation and renewal of license should not be expected without paying the required amount as per the law.
He also pointed out the possibility of merger and acquisition among the companies as there are many number of internet and telecommunication service providers in Nepal.”It is beneficial for both consumers and regulators to have a limited number of competent and financially sound service providers rather than having many weak companies,” Timilsina said. ISP proposes to pay arrears in installments
In the discussion, ISPAN said that the service providers are under financial pressure and it will be difficult to pay the arrears for five years at once.
The association has also urged the government to pay the amount of royalty and Rural Telecommunication Development Fund (RTDF) in installments.
According to ISPAN, the suspension of license renewal has also affected service expansion, banking transactions and business operations.
The association says that the financial condition of the companies will deteriorate further until the outstanding dispute is resolved.
The service providers have also demanded a review of the Telecommunication Service Charge (TSC) determination process.
They have also demanded that the Large Taxpayers’ Office should provide an opportunity to reassess the tax assessment. They have complained that they have to pay tax even on the amount that has not been collected from the customers.
According to the prevailing law, internet service providers have to pay 4 percent of their total income as royalty to the Ministry of Information and Communications and 2 percent to the Rural Telecommunication Development Fund through the Nepal Telecommunication Authority. However, most service providers have been unpaid for a long time, according to the regulator.
The service providers have been objecting to the NEA having repeatedly instructed it to submit the amount with additional fees on the basis of the audited financial statement.
The Office of the Auditor General has also been suggesting the government to recover the outstanding royalty, Rural Telecommunication Development Fund and other fees from the service providing companies through its annual report. The latest discussions between the government, regulatory bodies and service providers are expected to pave the way for a resolution of the long-stalled outstanding dispute.
However, the challenge of finding a compromise between the demands of the service providers and the government’s revenue collection obligation remains.
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