Those business entities that are not making use of current deposit or CD accounts are likely to be fined during Tax Assessment. The Department of Revenue and Customs will be checking both the CD and saving accounts of business entities in a move to address tax evasion. Foreign Affairs and External Trade Minister Dr Tandi Dorji said this during the Meet the Press session today.
The Department of Revenue and Customs mandated small, medium, and large businesses including CSOs to open CD accounts in August last year.
Although many complied and opened CD accounts, it has been found that business entities are not making use of their CD accounts. Customers are made to credit huge sums in savings accounts of business owners.
“They have also been told that if they do not use CD accounts they will be fined and the Department of Revenue and Customs will access both the CD and the savings accounts of all business houses during Tax Assessment and they will study the transactions and the volume exchange during the year. And if they find that the CD account has not been used for transactions and there are more transactions in the savings and their personal accounts that will be taken into consideration,” said Dr Tandi Dorji, Foreign Affairs and External Trade Minister.
There are about 62,000 business entities across the country and close to 56,000 CD accounts registered with four banks excluding the Bhutan National Bank as of February.
Devika Pradhan