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…Nandlall says Govt to go after employers who fail to remit workers NIS contributions
Kaieteur News- Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs Anil Nandlall said employers who deduct National Insurance Scheme (NIS) contributions from their employees’ salaries but fail to remit the funds to the entity will face the full force of the law.
Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs Anil Nandlall
Speaking during his weekly ‘Issues in the News’ programme, Nandlall emphasised that such actions are fraudulent and will be met with legal consequences. “We have said very clearly and firmly that once we find evidence of employers deducting monies from employees for NIS purposes and are not paying it over to NIS, they will be charged and prosecuted vigorously because that’s fraud.”
Nandlall admitted that the NIS remains one of the government’s most challenging institutions to manage, primarily due to two recurring issues. The first involves private sector workers whose employers deduct contributions from their salaries but fail to forward those sums to the NIS. Nandlall expressed, “This is a tragedy.” As a result, many contributors do not meet the required 750 contributions to qualify for a pension. “People are genuinely hurt and rightfully so, when they have made their contributions and they now can’t get the rewards,” he noted.
The second major issue relates to poor record-keeping, where some employers may have submitted payments but failed to properly transmit employee records. “It is a serious situation and a lot of people are affected,” Nandlall said. “It is for that reason that we decided to ameliorate the situation now. I know that this is not the solution. Not everyone will be pleased. I also know that this is better than nothing, and we said that we’ll do some adjustments.” He emphasised that the initiative is what the government is able to do at this time.
Last week, President Irfaan Ali announced that Guyanese who have attained the age of 60 on or before December 31, 2024, but did not qualify for an NIS pension, will receive a one-time cash grant ranging from $250,000 to $650,000. The initiative is backed by a $10 billion government allocation to the insurance scheme and is aimed at offering relief to those affected. More than 25,000 senior citizens are expected to benefit, with payouts expected to begin soon. The president had also urged eligible individuals not yet on the NIS database to register promptly at their nearest NIS office.
The one-time cash grants will be disbursed according to the number of NIS contributions an individual has made. Senior citizens who have made between 500 and 749 contributions will receive the following one-off payments: 500 to 549 contributions – $260,000; 550 to 599 contributions – $390,000; 600 to 699 contributions – $520,000 and persons who made 700 to 749 contributions – $650,000.
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