GRA, EOCO, NIB after top brands evading taxes, engaging in money laundering

Information reaching Rainbowradioinline.com indicates that the Ghana Revenue Authority in collaboration with relevant stakeholders such as the Financial Intelligence Unit, Economic and Organized Office (EOCO), and the National Investigations Bureau (NIB) formerly known as BNI are set to launch full-scale investigations against some popular companies in Ghana.

Per the information gathered, the GRA will soon investigate the companies for suspected offenses relating to tax evasion, non-tax compliance, and money laundering which contravenes the laws of Ghana.

From what this website has gathered, the companies involved are popular businesses and are mostly owned by foreign nationals.

The illegal act of tax evasion the companies are said to have breached includes making false declarations on tax returns, misrepresentation of trading records and or books of accounts (declaring less income, profits, or gains than the amounts actually earned or overstating deductions), and any act of dishonesty regarding a person’s taxation to the Ghana Revenue Authority.

The following are some tax-related offences suspected to have been committed by the companies;

Failure to issue VAT invoices contrary to section 41 of VAT ACT 2013, Act 896.

Failure to file tax returns (section 73 of the Revenue Administration Act 2016, Act 915).

Failure to pay the accurate tax due to the state (Sec 80 of the Revenue Administration Act 2016, Act 915).

Failure to comply with tax laws (Sec 78 of the Revenue Administration Act 2016, Act 915).

Making False and misleading Statements (Sec 74 & 81 of the Revenue Administration Act 2016, Act 915