Ministry of Taxes: Traders Evade Payments to Treasury

The Ministry of Taxes accused traders of tax evasion.

At today's press conference the head of the risk analysis and supervision department of the Ministry of Taxes of Azerbaijan Elshan Huseynov highlighted this segment of the economy, as trade and catering services have a considerable share in GDP and tax revenues.

"According to the statistics of the first quarter, traders on the background of reducing the number and frequency of inspections either understate the bar or completely evade taxes. So, in comparison with the figures as of 1 April of the previous year the total number of control measures in this sector fell by 64.2%, including on-site inspections - by 40%, off-site ones - by 61.2%, and operational control measures - by 92.5%. In the course of timing in one of the major retail chains it was revealed that the taxpayer understated its sales by 6 times in February, and in March it even showed a zero turnover, although in March the turnover grew by the Novruz holidays. This causes complaints about the taxpayer," he said.

The ministry did not get hung up on tax payment in retail outlets before. Most likely, the special statement was made on the fact of appeal by the management of several large supermarkets to the country's leadership and to the Minister of Economy. --17D-