Issue receipts every time and publish official payment channels

Make official receipts mandatory for every payment and publicise the channels that are authorised to receive tax money. This reduces leakage, protects taxpayers, and makes the payment system feel safer and more legitimate.

• Taxpayers worry that payments are not being recorded properly.

• Money is collected through multiple counters or third parties.

• The city wants a visible anti-leakage reform with immediate trust value.

• A standard receipt format and a rule that every payment must produce proof.

• A public list of authorised channels and a way to report suspicious collections.

• This should not be treated as a substitute for reconciliation and cash controls.

• Do not multiply receipt formats in ways that confuse taxpayers and staff.

These reforms may look technical, but they are central to trust. It is hard to justify tougher enforcement if taxpayers still face confusing channels, poor receipts, or weak control over where money goes.

The full card would help the city plan which channels to prioritise, how to partner with banks or mobile operators, how payments will be posted and reconciled, and how the city will communicate safe payment routes.

• Add easy payment channels close to the taxpayer

• Tighten cash handling and daily reconciliation.

Trust rises when taxpayers can prove that they paid and can easily see which channels are authorised to receive tax money. Mandatory receipting and a visible list of official payment channels are therefore basic anti-leakage reforms as well as customer-service reforms. They reduce space for unofficial collectors, protect honest staff, and make it easier for the city to ask taxpayers to pay through safer, traceable routes.

• Taxpayers worry that money disappears, is misdirected, or is not posted correctly.

• Payments are collected through several counters, agents, or partner institutions.

• The city wants a visible reform that protects both revenue and taxpayer confidence.

• Begin with one standard receipt rule that applies across all channels, rather than different local practices by office or payment point.

• If a fully digital receipt is not yet realistic, start with serialised paper or hybrid receipts and one clear rule for how they are logged.

• Publish the list of official payment routes before widening collection activity, so taxpayers can recognise legitimate channels.

• Whether the city will use only digital receipts, only paper receipts, or a hybrid arrangement during transition.

• How taxpayers can verify that a channel is official and report suspicious collectors or fake receipts.

• How much receipt detail should be shown on the spot versus in the back-office posting record.

First 90 days

• Standardise the receipt format and include the basic identifiers taxpayers need: date, amount, property reference, and payment channel.

• List all currently authorised payment channels and remove outdated or ambiguous ones before the public campaign starts.

• Brief all staff and partner agents that no payment is complete until the taxpayer receives proof.

6 to 12 months

• Launch the standard receipt and channel list together so the message is easy to understand.

• Monitor the first cycle for missing receipts, duplicate serial numbers, or confusion about which channels remain valid.

• Create a simple complaint route for taxpayers who paid without receiving proof or who suspect an unofficial collector.

12 to 24 months and beyond

• Update the channel list routinely and make sure old posters, handbills, or website pages do not keep circulating once routes change.

• Bring receipt issuance and verification into routine supervision, audits, and staff performance checks.

• Use trends from complaints and verification requests to tighten payment controls further.

• Check whether financial regulations already make receipting mandatory and, if so, ensure practice matches the rule.

• If third parties collect on behalf of the city, include clear receipting and posting obligations in their agreements.

• Clarify sanctions for staff or agents who take money outside authorised channels or fail to issue proof.

• The city needs reliable control over receipt books, digital receipt ranges, or other numbering systems.

• Public communications matter: taxpayers must know where to look for the official list and how to challenge suspicious demands.

• Back-office staff need a way to trace a receipt number back to a ledger entry when problems arise.

• Multiple receipt formats can confuse taxpayers and make fraud easier; simplify rather than proliferate.

• If the official channel list is not kept current, the city may unintentionally legitimise unsafe routes.

• If complaints are invited but never answered, the reform can backfire by highlighting problems without resolving them.

• Share of payments that generated a valid receipt.

• Number of complaints about missing or suspicious receipts.

• Number of taxpayers using authorised versus unofficial channels, where that can be observed.

• Time taken to verify or resolve a receipt-related complaint.

• Add easy payment channels close to the taxpayer.

• Tighten cash handling and daily reconciliation.

• Track collections and arrears every week.

• How will the city make the official channel list visible in every ward or payment point?

• What proof should every taxpayer expect to receive, regardless of channel?

• Who controls receipt numbering and investigates irregularities?

• How will suspicious payment requests be reported and acted on?