Minister Reminds Taxpayers To Take Part In Tax Amnesty Program

Jakarta (Antara Bali) - Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati has reminded taxpayers who have not yet joined the government's tax amnesty program to take part in it soon before it ended on March 31, 2017.

"We are offering the last chance because the program will end and will not be revived after March 31, 2017," the finance minister said in a tax amnesty farewell function which was also attended by President Joko Widodo in Jakarta on Tuesday.

Minister Mulyani asked taxpayers to take advantage of the remaining time before the program ended. This is to protect taxpayers who have not yet reported their assets from being examined by the tax authorities.

"We will use all data at the custom and excise, tax office, industry and regions to trace disobedient taxpayers. So, if there are taxpayers who did not filed a tax report (SPT) while they have economic activities, we will find them easily," she said.

Taxpayers are recommended to take part in the tax amnesty program so that they would not be subject to high tax sanctions.

"We will impose a two percent sanction for 24 months meaning that the negligent taxpayers will have a sanction of paying a 48 percent tax. It could be compared with the tax amnesty tariff which is set at five percent only," the minister said.

On the occasion, the minister said that as February 27, 2017 the value of declared assets by taxpayers who have taken part in the program has reached Rp4,414 trillion, or about 34.4 percent of the domestic gross product (GDP).

The realization of redemption money from the program was Rp112 trillion or 0.88 percent of the GDP. (WDY)