TEMPO.CO, Jakarta – The Finance Ministry’s Directorate General of Tax is targeting 56 delinquent taxpayers for evading taxes. Each company has tax arrears amounting to over Rp100 million (US$8,333.3).

“We’re considering to enforce the gijzeling (sending non-payers to debtors prison), because they [the taxpayers] have never fulfilled their tax liabilities nor showed good intention [to settle tax arrears],” director general of audit and tax collection Dadang Suwarna said at Salemba Penitentiary, Cental Jakarta, on Friday, January 30, 2015.

According to Dadang, the 56 delinquent taxpayers are on travel-ban list, along with hundreds of others. Dadang added that the move was made to prevent those taxpayers from dodging taxes.

“So, when they are arrested, the tax bailiff will trace their assets,” Dadang said.

Dadang explained that in previous cases delinquent taxpayers had been released a day after being put in jail, because they settled their tax arrears immediately. However, the arrest could be extended to six months if they failed to pay the arrears, and another six months if the arrears remained unpaid.

In the near future, five institutions and an individual will be imprisoned in a special prison for evading taxes worth Rp13.6 billion (US$1.13 million). If the taxpayers fail to settle their tax debts, the Directorate General of Tax will impose another form of sanction, including auctioning off their seized assets.

PRAGA UTAMA