Organisation Chart of Inland Revenue Department as at 31.3.2011
Establishment
The Commissioner, the two Deputy Commissioners and the five Assistant Commissioners form the top management of Inland Revenue Department.
As at 31 March 2011, the Department had an establishment of 2,818 permanent posts (including 25 posts for directorate officers) in the Commissioner's Office and six Units. Of the total, 1,820 posts were in departmental grades (namely Assessor, Taxation Officer and Tax Inspector grades), performing duties directly concerned with taxation. The remaining 998 posts were in common / general grades, providing administrative, information technology and clerical support services (Figure 36).
Most of the professional officers serving in the Department were below the age of 45
(Figure 37). The ratio of male to female professional officers was 1:1.5.Figure 36 Staff establishment
Figure 37 Age profile of professionals (on strength basis)
| Age Group | Male | Female | Total | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Below 25 | 4 | (2%) | 8 | (2%) | 12 | (2%) | |||||
| 25 to below 35 | 33 | (12%) | 96 | (24%) | 129 | (19%) | |||||
| 35 to below 45 | 93 | (33%) | 139 | (34%) | 232 | (34%) | |||||
| 45 to below 55 | 115 | (41%) | 144 | (35%) | 259 | (38%) | |||||
| 55 and over | 33 | (12%) | 20 | (5%) | 53 | (7%) | |||||
| Total | 278 | (100%) | 407 | (100%) | 685 | (100%) | |||||
In 2010-11, a total of 57 departmental grade officers and 9 common / general grade officers were promoted, 7 of them were in directorate ranks. 89 officers joined the Department, of which 66 were new appointees and 23 were officers transferred from other departments. A total of 118 officers (including 34 transferred to other departments) left the Department.
Recruitment
HKICPA Career Forum 2010
Inland Revenue Department participated in the Career Forum 2010 organised by the Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants on 10 October 2010 at the Cyberport Conference and Exhibition Centre. The Forum provided a good opportunity for the Department to introduce its work and career opportunities to those interested in pursuing their career in the Department. IRD's booth attracted about 700 visitors.
Training and Development
The Department continues to offer a variety of training courses, including taxation and accounting knowledge, interpersonal skills, management and languages. In 2010-11, our staff undertook a total of 10,142 man-day trainings, which was equivalent to about 3.7 man-days per officer. Major training programmes included:
- Induction courses for all grades of staff upon joining the Department
- Two-part taxation law and practice course for newly appointed assistant assessors
- Briefing sessions for legislative amendments or new services
- Refresher courses on professional knowledge
- Course on Hong Kong Accounting Standards
- Oral and written English courses
- Chinese writing course
- Performance appraisal workshop on writing and interviewing skills
- Putonghua and Computer courses for all staff
In 2010-11, the Department continued to provide training courses for professional officers to enhance their soft skills. Highlights of these training courses are:
- Workshop on time management and stress management
- Workshop on public speaking for senior assessors to enhance their presentation skills
- Effective negotiation skills workshops for officers working in Field Audit and Investigation Unit
- Leadership and teamwork workshop for officers to enhance the leadership skills and raise team spirit by experiential learning through games and outdoor activities
A Mentorship Scheme for Assistant Assessors was launched since 2008. In this scheme, experienced officers (the mentors) will guide newly recruited Assistant Assessors (the mentees) to broaden their perception about the Department and help them to integrate into the civil service. During the year, a survey was conducted to obtain feedback from mentors and mentees to further enhance the scheme. On 21 March 2011, the Commissioner officiated the Mentorship Scheme Closing cum Opening Ceremony during which appreciation was extended to the 2010 mentors and the third year of the scheme was launched. Since 2008, we have recruited a total of 55 mentors and 73 mentees. To facilitate communications, we launched an IRD's blog for dedicated use by mentors and mentees.
Continuing Professional Education
During the year, 13 seminars were held under the in-house Continuing Professional Education (CPE) Programme. The seminars covered a wide range of subjects including Exchange of Information in the Agreement for the Avoidance of Double Taxation, Hong Kong Financial Reporting Standard for Private Entities, Implementation Measures of Special Tax Adjustments, Rules of Evidence, Stress Management, Taxation of Termination Payments, Managing Y-generation, Mutual Agreement Procedure in the Agreement for the Avoidance of Double Taxation, Customer Services and Taxation of Shipping Profits. Speakers for five of the seminars were staff members and other speakers were experts from various fields. A total of 1,847 staff members attended these seminars. The video files of the CPE seminars were uploaded onto the Intranet and a total of 332 staff members had viewed these video files.
Overseas and China Training
We offer our officers opportunities to participate in overseas training programmes to broaden their horizons and to acquire the necessary knowledge for new and complex global issues. During the past year, 72 officers attended the following overseas training courses:
- 35 officers attended various overseas courses in the United States of America, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, the United Kingdom, the Philippines and the United Arab Emirates
- 25 attended training courses jointly organised by the State Administration of Taxation and OECD in China
- 11 attended various national studies courses at Peking University, Tsinghua University, Peking University Shenzhen Graduate School and Guangzhou Sun Yat-sen University
- One attended the Thematic Study Programme – Coastal Development Plan of Jiangsu Province
In May 2010, the Department organised a joint seminar on "Implementation Measures of Special Tax Adjustments" with the State Administration of Taxation. Speakers included two officers of the State Administration of Taxation, the Commissioner of Inland Revenue and the Deputy Commissioner of Inland Revenue. The seminar was open to members of 12 professional bodies and four chambers of commerce and recorded an attendance of over 560.
Continuous Learning
Staff are the Department's valuable assets. We recognize the importance of providing opportunities of continuous learning to our staff to keep them abreast of the changing environment and to acquire the necessary knowledge to perform their duties. Apart from the conventional classroom training, the Department employs various means to promote the culture of continuous self-learning. These include encouraging staff to take the web courses provided by the CLC Plus of CSTDI and providing financial support to officers to attend seminars and courses organised by academic and professional institutes. 110 officers were sponsored by the Department to attend the relevant courses. Training materials and information were uploaded onto our Intranet for officers to study in their own time and at their own pace. This provides an effective way for the staff to acquire new knowledge and refresh what they have learnt.
Staff Relations and Welfare
The Department puts great emphasis on staff relations and welfare. We strive to maintain effective communication with staff at all levels and promote co-operation and mutual trust between staff and the management in enhancing the Department's operational efficiency and productivity.
The Departmental Consultative Committee (DCC)
The Departmental Consultative Committee provides a formal and effective platform for the management and staff to exchange views on matters of mutual concern such as recruitment, promotion, career posting, training, working environment, staff welfare, office security and safety. The Committee is chaired by the Deputy Commissioner (Operations) and composed of representatives from all staff unions / associations and staff groups in the Department.
The General Grades Consultative Committee (GGCC)
The General Grades Consultative Committee is chaired by the Departmental Secretary. It also allows staff members of the secretarial and clerical grades to discuss with the management about issues that are of specific interest to their grades.
The "Meet-the-Staff Programme"
First launched in 1996-97, the Programme enables the senior management of each Unit and staff of different Sections / groups to meet regularly for exchanging ideas on departmental and service-wide issues in an open and relaxed manner. It serves to supplement the formal consultative channel and effectively enhances communication between staff and the management.
The IRD Staff Suggestions Scheme
During 2010-11, 5 out of 19 suggestions received were granted cash awards and certificates of commendation in recognition of their contributions to enhancing operational efficiency and quality of services.
The Inland Revenue Department Newsletter
Published quarterly, the Departmental Newsletter is another channel of communication between staff and the management that serves to promote a sense of belonging in the Department. Service-related issues, staff welfare, occupational and safety matters are disseminated through articles contributed by staff and unit management. The Newsletter also provides a regular roundup on the recreational activities organised by the Department's Sports Association as well as volunteer activities organised by the Department's Volunteer Team.
The Inland Revenue General Staff Welfare Fund (IRGSWF)
The Inland Revenue General Staff Welfare Fund was established voluntarily by a group of staff in 1972. It operates on funds donated by staff on a voluntary basis. With the endorsement of the Claims Sub-committee, which is formed to consider applications for financial assistance, small amount of interest-free loans or grants will be provided as an additional, quick source of emergency relief to help staff with unexpected financial hardship.
Commissioner's Commendation Letter Scheme
In 2010-11, 53 officers were awarded the Commissioner's Commendation Letter in recognition of their exemplary performance in the Civil Service. The presentation ceremony was held in March 2011.
In 2010, a Senior Assistant Assessor was awarded the SCS's Commendation in recognition of his consistently outstanding services and exemplary performance in his daily work. The presentation ceremony was held in November 2010.
The Long and Meritorious Service Travel Awards Scheme
In 2010-11, 30 officers with long and meritorious service were granted awards of overseas travel with their spouses under the Long and Meritorious Service Travel Award Scheme.
The IRD Sports Association
The Sports Association plays a very important role in fostering staff relationship and sense of belonging. To enrich the intellectual, social and athletic interests of its members, in 2010-11, other than thematic talks, interest classes, workshops, outings, sports competition and the annual dinner 2010, the Association organised two cross-border trips to Shenzhen, Kaiping and Panyu. The activities were well received by colleagues and their family members.
| The IRD Volunteer Team under the auspices of the Association is an active participant in numerous charitable and community works, extending love and care to the less privileged in the society. Throughout the year, there were 362 colleagues participated in various kinds of voluntary services, recording a total of 2,430 service hours. In recognition of the continuous efforts in caring the community, the Hong Kong Council of Social Service awarded the "5 Years Plus Caring Organisation Logo" to the Department. This marks the sixth consecutive year in which the Department was granted the award. |  |
 As regards fund-raising activities, the Association also actively took part in "Medecins Sans Frontieres Day" and "ORBIS Pin Campaign". The results in terms of the amounts raised and the number of donors were both very satisfactory. The generous contributions by our colleagues were highly praised by both charitable organizations. |