Tip-offs expose tax defaulters — GRA
Tip-offs from the public are playing a major role in the identification of businesses that are flouting the tax laws across the country, the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) has said.
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The Accra Central Area Enforcement Manager of the GRA, Assistant Commissioner, Joseph Annan, who said this, therefore, commended the public and urged them to continue supporting the authority by providing reliable information that would expose businesses that were flouting the tax laws.
"I commend the consuming public for their support over the period and I encourage them to do more to help the GRA rake in the needed revenue for development," he said.
Although, Mr Annan did not give figures in terms of the number of tip-offs received from the public and the number of businesses that have been exposed so far, he said "we have received numerous calls while people send us receipts and invoices issued to them when they patronise goods and services and they suspect the people behind the business were not complying with the law".
The development, he added, was helping the GRA, which had been employing a number of test purchases and mystery buying, to identify businesses that were not complying with the tax laws.
Enforcement exercise
Mr Annan said this when he interacted with some journalists after a task force from the authority embarked on an enforcement exercise to arrest business operators who had failed to issue the Value Added Tax (VAT) invoices in compliance with the tax laws in some parts of Accra.
During the exercise, managers of three companies visited were arrested by the team and taken to the GRA headquarters for their statements to be taken.
They were later handed over to the Criminal Investigations Department of the Ghana Police Service for further investigations and prosecution where needed.
Record books, computers and invoices of the companies were also taken for further auditing and assessment.
The companies visited were Homebase Ventures Limited behind the Achimota Forest, dealers in electrical products; New-Tom-Pat Enterprise at Madina, dealers in soft drinks and alcoholic beverages and Modern Star and Drinks supplies at Madina, dealers in soft drinks.
It was found that the companies were either involved in selective issuance of VAT receipts or they were not issuing them at all.
E-VAT
Mr Annan said adhering to the tax laws was not only a civic responsibility, but a way for taxpayers to contribute to the development of the country.
He said the GRA would continue to conduct its unannounced visits to businesses to ensure full compliance of the tax laws.