300 Tax Defaulters Nabbed Last Year

The Value Added Tax (VAT) Service, in collaboration with the Police Service, arrested over 300 tax defaulters nationwide last year.

However, the courts imposed ridiculously low fines on most of the offenders and so it failed to serve as a deterrent to other evaders in addition to failing to cover the cost of the operations.

The commissioner of VAT Service, Mr. J. E. Odartey Blankson, disclosed this at a one-day seminar for judges and prosecutors from the Volta and Eastern regions at Koforidua last weekend.

Mr. Blankson expressed regret over some VAT registered business' attitude of being selective in charging the tax and others failing to issue VAT invoices.

The tax collectors suggested that there should be strong collaboration between the revenue collecting agencies and the judiciary to help in collecting the right amount of taxes so as to ensure the rapid development of the country.

He appealed to the courts to assist the revenue collecting agencies by "sending strong signals to people" and making them aware of the revenue collecting agencies' intentions to mobilise national revenue effectively.

The commissioner stressed the need to strengthen the VAT law in order to ensure compliance and more successful collection of revenue for national development.

Blankson appealed to the general public to give information on non-issuance of VAT invoices, non-registration by unscrupulous persons and other users of tax.

Participants were taken through the nature and scope of VAT compliance requirements as well as offences and penalties.