The Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) taskforce has arrested five mall managers on Spintex Road in Accra for allegedly evading tax through the electronic Value Added Tax (VAT) system.
China Mall, Sneda Shopping Mall, and Fresh First Limited were found to be not issuing the e-VAT, while Palace Mall and Shoprite at the Junction Mall were found to be issuing receipts with duplicate signatures of the Ghana Revenue Authority’s Commissioner General.
The managers were taken to the customs office at the headquarters for statements before being turned over to the police criminal investigation department.
The initiative is part of a nationwide VAT invigilation effort to ensure tax compliance and recover taxes owed to the state.
According to Edward Appenteng Gyamerah, the GRA’s commissioner in charge of the domestic tax revenue division, the GRA discovered that some taxpayers were issuing invoices that were not certified by the commissioner-general as required by law.
He stated that under section 41 of the VAT Act 2013, (Act 870), as amended by Acts 1082 and 1087, every registered VAT taxpayer was required to issue an electronic VAT invoice with the commissioner-prescribed general’s details when providing services or supplying goods.
The findings of the investigations, some taxpayers were involved in the issuance of false tax invoices or sales receipts, while others failed to integrate the certified invoicing system into the GRA commissioner-invoicing general’s system.
Mr. Gyamerah added that the punishment for such infractions under the VAT Act included a fine of no more than 100 penalty units or a term of imprisonment of no more than six months, or both, in addition to a payment of a penalty of no more than GHC50,000 or three times the amount of tax involved.
People who broke the law could also face charges under sections 78 and 82 of the Revenue Administration Act, 2016 (Act 915), which deal with failing to comply with tax law and impeding tax administration, respectively.
Gyamerah stated that the authority had dispatched officials across the country to find companies that were not abiding by the law.
“The commissioner-general will prosecute all persons found to have committed offences under the provisions of the tax laws,” he said.
The commissioner urged the general public and all VAT taxpayers to report any tax violations to the authority so that appropriate action could be taken.
Mr. Joseph Annan stated that the GRA’s area enforcement manager in charge of Accra Central, the authority will continue to conduct surprise shopping exercises across the country as part of a nationwide invigilation to apprehend tax evaders.
