KPMG in Bahrain To Host the Kingdom’s First Online Tax Summit

Professional services firm, KPMG in Bahrain, is gearing up to host the first Tax Summit in the Kingdom, to be held virtually. 

The Summit themed “Reimagining Tax in the Kingdom of Bahrain”, will be held between 12–14 October 2020 and is designed not only to provide practical business-relevant industry updates through sector break-out sessions but also recommendations on best practice approaches for efficient tax management and what to expect for Tax in Bahrain in the months to come.  The summit will also include answers from the Bahrain National Bureau for Revenue (NBR) on burning questions from Taxpayers.

The Summit will be an ideal platform for Tax and Finance professionals across all sectors to learn more about leveraging technology for Value-added Tax (VAT) reporting, in alignment with the National Bureau for Revenue’s (NBR) ongoing compliance requirements. Traditional methods of compliance including entrenched manual processes, require tax professionals to spend a tremendous amount of time on collection, compilation and validation of data and documents. Manual processes typically involve a higher rate of risk due to human error in relation to the accuracy of data and information during the reporting process. This could potentially lead to disruption in operations and significant regulatory penalties.

Philippe Norré, Partner and Head of Tax and Corporate Services at KPMG in Bahrain, commented on the upcoming event and said: “In the current business environment most organizations are looking to re-engineer their core processes. Business strategies for digitalization and digital transformation are being accelerated, and the priority for automation of processes and protocols are rising. As businesses look towards considering automation of the VAT processes to help navigate through the complexities throughout their entire supply chain, they will need to consider issues pertaining to accuracy, compliance, resource optimization and how the overall technological intervention can contribute towards their operational excellence.”

Mubeen Khadir, Tax and Corporate Services Partner at KPMG in Bahrain added: “Data management and Tax accounting require an inevitable switch to tech-based solutions, more than ever before. Our team have coupled practical working knowledge and subject matter expertise to develop a market leading tech-based compliance and reporting solution – ‘KPMG Enara’. Our IT enabled tax solution has been specifically designed to meet the needs and requirements of any business to ensure compliance with NBR, while also providing reliable end-to-end automation in the organization’s processes.”

The Summit will host key knowledge sessions across three days facilitated by the KPMG leadership team. The Summit will also feature the Managing Partner of KPMG in Bahrain, Jamal Fakhro, and the Global Head of Indirect Tax for KPMG International, Lachlan Wolfers as guest speakers.

Participation in the first ‘virtual’ Tax Summit will be complimentary for all registered participants. While the sessions are focused towards Heads of Finance, Finance and Tax managers, Head of Internal Audit, CIOs, and COOs across all business sectors in Bahrain, it will also be a unique learning opportunity for aspiring Tax and Finance professionals in the Kingdom of Bahrain. For more information and registration, please contact Khalid Seyadi, Senior Marketing Executive at KPMG in Bahrain, [email protected] or visit www.home.kpmg/bh

KPMG in Bahrain is a member firm of KPMG international. The firm was established in 1968 as the first national accounting and auditing firm, and it has grown to be one of the largest professional services firms in the Kingdom. The firm provides Audit, Tax and Advisory services to a wide array of clients operating in different sectors, by utilizing the in-depth technical and industry experience of its professional staff.