Businesses Default In Tax Payment

A report of the Auditor-General on the Public Accounts of Ghana for the year ended 31 December, 2011 revealed outstanding corporate tax figures recorded by some government agencies within Accra and its environs. Out of 486 corporate tax files reviewed at the Legon District Tax Recovery Office (DTRO), 228 companies defaulted in the payment of their corporate taxes amounting to GH�13,447,850 for the 2010 year of assessment. Similarly, out of 265 tax files belonging to self-employed businesses and professional firms, 130 entities owed a total of GH�4,247,227 as at the end of the year of assessment. Also, from a sample of 616 taxpayers� files reviewed at the Makola DTRO, 221 companies and 274 self-employed business enterprises owed the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) a total of GH�3,370,257 in respect of provisional and final tax assessments. At the Osu DTRO, out of the 340 taxpayers� files reviewed, 88 companies had provisional and final corporate tax of GH�2,246,624 outstanding as at the end of 2009 year of assessment. Also at the same tax recovery office, documents showed that Zenith College and Ghana International School had failed to settle corporate taxes assessed from 2001 to 2009 totaling GH�420, 769. �Our review of 464 taxpayers� files of corporate taxpayers and self-employed business entities at the Adabraka DTRO disclosed that 212 companies and 94 self-employed businesses, representing 66 percent of taxpayers operating under the jurisdiction of the tax office, had outstanding provisional and final corporate tax amounting to GH�2,195,494 as at the end of April 2011 for the 2009year of assessment.� �Additionally, out of a sample of 257 corporate taxpayers� files reviewed at the Tema DTRO, we noted that 113 companies owed a total of GH�1,717,248 for the 2009 year of assessment. �We further noted that 133 self-employed business entities out of a sample of 223 had defaulted in the payment of taxes amounting to GH�269,358 for 2009. �At the Kinbu DTRO, out of 177 taxpayers� files sampled, we observed that 50 companies, 25 self-employed business entities and nine professionals had defaulted in the payment of outstanding corporate taxes amounting GH�1,112,466 at the end of 2010, it noted. The review of 312 taxpayers� files at the Achimota DTRO showed that 79 companies and 116 self-employed owed the Ghana Revenue Authority a total of GH�721,663 at the end of 2010. Similarly, out of 150 corporate tax files and 140 files of self-employed business enterprises at the Agbogbloshie DTRO, 93 companies and 57 business entities owed GH�536,718 and GH�85,689 respectively in corporate taxes at the end of 2010. At the Mataheko DTRO, out of 276 taxpayers� files reviewed, 142 companies, representing 51 percent of the companies operating in the district had outstanding provisional and corporate tax amounting to GH�505,201 at the end of 2009. Additionally, at the Mataheko DTRO �we noted that three university colleges � Methodist University College, Regent University College and Central University College owed corporate tax to the tune of GH�2,381,134 as at the end of 2009. At the Abeka Lapaz DTRO, 119 companies representing 52.8 percent of the taxpayer population had outstanding corporate tax of GH�333,558 as at end of 2009, it stated. The inability of management to locate defaulting taxpayers and the location of the district office within the Agbogbloshie Market contributed to taxpayer apathy.