KPMG in Bahrain Discuss the Importance of Accounting in Managing VAT for Entrepreneurs During a Seminar

As part of the firm’s entrepreneurship club activities, KPMG in Bahrain held a seminar session today bringing together over 150 entrepreneurs and representatives from local enterprises to discuss the importance of accounting and financial planning in the current value-added tax (VAT) era.

Entrepreneurs and business owners across all sectors received an update on the indirect tax situation in the Kingdom of Bahrain following the recent implementation of VAT in January this year and as it will be ongoing. They also obtained insight about the key challenges facing the currently VAT registered companies (businesses within an annual supplies threshold of BD 5 million) and the lessons learnt day by day.

Jamal Fakhro, Managing Partner at KPMG in Bahrain, welcomed the participants and emphasized the key role of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the local economy and the importance of helping them to remain competitive despite the increasing regulations and market changes.

Harish Gopinath, Partner and Head of KPMG Enterprise at KPMG in Bahrain commented during the event “Having accurate information about finances and cash flow is critical for SMEs to enable sound decision-making and foster business growth at any stage of their business life-cycle. Since VAT is implemented in Bahrain in phases, entrepreneurs should start getting ready as soon as possible to administer VAT. This mean recording and reporting VAT obligations and refund entitlements within specific timeframes. Having an IT enabled VAT control framework would also make this process more efficient, minimizes errors, and ensure VAT has neutral impact on their operations.”

The event also featured interactive presentations from Philippe Norré, Partner and Head of Tax at KPMG in Bahrain, on the latest tax developments in Bahrain as well as the upcoming VAT compliance requirements for SMEs. Sumit Pandey, Senior Manager at KPMG in Bahrain, showcased KPMG’s Enterprise Accounting Solution (EAS), and online tool designed to make financial management processes simple and available to everyone at a competitive price. The event was concluded with a presentation by Padmanabhan Nurani, Associate Director at KPMG in Bahrain, on the automation solutions available in the market.  

The event took place on 22 January 2019 at Radisson Blu Hotel.