IRD preparing on-the-spot penalty
KATHMANDU, JAN 25 -
The Inland Revenue Department (IRD) is planning to conduct intensive monitoring to check tax dodging and use of fake bills and take action against offenders on the spot.
As per the plan, tax officers across the country will go for field monitoring at least once a week. “We will start such monitoring within a month,” said Tanka Mani Sharma, director general of the IRD.
Stating that monitoring activities have yielded positive output in terms of controlling tax dodging and collecting more revenue, Sharma said the planned aggressive monitoring is supplementary to the existing market monitoring. “We also aim to raise awareness among taxpayers with this new campaign,” he said.
The IRD has been preparing a mechanism under which tax officers will participate in monitoring the market along with other staff and impose penalties immediately on the spot if any firm or person is found to be engaged in illegal practices.
“During the monitoring, tax officers will collect the amount of tax that the offender has tried to evade along with the fine,” said Sharma.
According to IRD officials, there are 150 tax officers in the Kathmandu valley and 500 altogether in the country. “All these officers should compulsorily lead monitoring teams once a week on a rotation basis,” said a department official.
The official also said that only a couple of days ago, the IRD have instructed tax officers at all the Inland Revenue Offices and Taxpayers Serve Offices to get ready to take part in the monitoring patrols.
IRD Director Tulsi Sedai said that the monitoring had been designed in response to numerous complaints about traders not issuing VAT and other bills, issuing counterfeit bills and not keeping accounts. He added that most taxpayers had not been paying the house rent tax, declaring a lower rental than what was actually being charged and not paying the educational service tax.
“To control such negligence, the monitoring will especially focus on academic institutions, trading stores, business firms and corporate houses, among others,” said Sedai, adding that one tax officer would investigate around 10 businesses.
Previously, the IRD had directed that the probe on 50 firms out of the 518 suspended for VAT evasion be completed. To conclude the probe, the Big Taxpayers’ Office (BTO) is currently is going through the dubious transactions of 50 firms.
The IRD has also been drafting a work plan to carry out monitoring. “We have almost completed the drafting process of the plan; and within two weeks, we will send it to the concerned authorities,” added Sharma.
As part of an aggressive drive to recover outstanding VAT, TDA, income tax and excise duty, the IRD till Monday has suspended the banking accounts, fixed assets and businesses of 100 firms across the country. The IRD started its recovery drive on Jan 15 after outstanding tax dues began piling up for a long time and reached more than Rs 24 billion.
With all these campaigns to control loopholes and revenue leakage, the IRD has succeeded in showing an impressive result till the first half of the current fiscal year. The department has collected Rs 1.21 billion more than its target during the first half of the current fiscal year. During the period, the department took in Rs 44.83 billion against its target of Rs 43.62 billion.
Source: Kantipur
