Those with tax debts to be announced today

Minister of Treasury and Finance Mehmet Şimşek recalled their decision to announce those with tax debts to the state, stating that those with tax debts exceeding 5 million liras will be announced today on the Revenue Administration's website.

Providing information that they will announce the indebted taxpayers in two lists, Şimşek said that the first list will include taxes and penalties finalized due to assessments made supplementarily, ex officio, or by the administration, and the second list will share with the public taxes and penalties that have not been paid despite being overdue.

"THESE ARE BUSINESSES THAT HAVE EITHER GONE BANKRUPT OR HAVE NO ASSETS"

Şimşek stated that there are 2,464 taxpayers on the "finalized assessments" list and that the total of their finalized taxes and penalties is 53 billion liras, adding, "419 of these taxpayers are real persons, and 2,045 are legal entities. 299 of the taxpayers on the list are active, accounting for 12.1 percent of the total taxpayers. The amount of finalized tax and penalty for them reaches 6.3 billion liras. The number of inactive taxpayers is 2,165. The finalized taxes and penalties for them amounted to 46.6 billion liras" he said.

Emphasizing that those on this list cannot be directly called "tax debtors," Şimşek reported that the list includes those whose finalized assessments were made regarding taxpayers who had deficiencies in their tax declarations, did not file any declarations at all, or received unfair tax refunds.

Pointing out that the fact that these finalized assessments have been paid does not prevent them from being disclosed, Şimşek said, "Therefore, it should not be confused with the other list of debtors. Of course, most of the taxpayers on this list are businesses established for purposes such as issuing fake documents or tax evasion, even though they have no real activity. 1,752 out of the 2,464 taxpayers on the list are of this type. The amount of tax and penalty finalized regarding them is 42.9 billion liras, and this amount corresponds to 81.1 percent of the total announced amount. This amount also has no collection capability. Because these are businesses that have either gone bankrupt or have no assets, even if there is no bankruptcy decision against them. Their owners also have no assets. Such businesses are usually opened in the names of people who have no assets and disappear after the goal is achieved" he stated.

"FRAUDSTERS WILL BE COLLECTED VIA ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE"

Stating that they have made various legal regulations to combat such businesses that gain unfair profit by issuing fake documents, but some were canceled by the Constitutional Court, Şimşek said, "New laws were enacted regarding these, and some of our regulations were approved. As part of our efforts to combat the informal economy, we are utilizing artificial intelligence to identify such taxpayers who evade the law and commit fraud. We have launched a project with the TÜBİTAK Artificial Intelligence Institute to identify taxpayers with a high risk of issuing fake documents and those with a high risk of requesting unfair refunds by utilizing artificial intelligence technologies. We will now be able to identify businesses established for the purpose of receiving unfair refunds from the state or issuing fake documents in a very short time by analyzing many data with artificial intelligence technologies, and we will be able to immediately close their tax liabilities. In this way, we will protect both honest taxpayers and the public interest" he assessed.

"DEBTS DATING BACK MANY YEARS"

Şimşek provided information that the second list will include disclosures regarding taxes and penalties that were due as of December 31, 2023, but remained unpaid as of September 30, and are 5 million liras or more, saying:

"The number of taxpayers on this list is 36,806. 7,948 of them are real persons, and 28,858 are legal entities. 4,807 of these taxpayers are active, accounting for 13.1 percent of the total number of taxpayers. The number of inactive taxpayers is 31,999. The total of taxes and penalties that have not been paid despite being overdue for these taxpayers reaches 914.9 billion liras. The total debt amount of active taxpayers is 113.8 billion liras, and their share in the total debt is 12.4 percent. The debt amount of inactive taxpayers is 801.1 billion liras. Look, 30,696 of the 36,806 taxpayers we will announce as tax debtors have no collection capability. The total of taxes and penalties that have not been paid despite being overdue is 914.9 billion liras, but the amount of receivables without collection capability is 812.8 billion liras. 88.8 percent of these receivables have no possibility of collection. These are debts that date back many years."

Clarifying why these receivables could not be collected, Şimşek said, "These taxpayers or their legal representatives have no assets. All legal proceedings have been carried out against them, but the receivables cannot be collected. They remain in the state's legal records as long as they do not expire. From time to time, they also cause criticism regarding collection-accrual ratios" he stated.

"METICULOUS WORK IS BEING DONE TO COLLECT TAX RECEIVABLES"

Minister Şimşek stated that they are working meticulously on the collection of tax receivables and noted the following:

"The most important source of income for the state is taxes. Therefore, it is extremely important that they are paid on time. We carry out all enforcement proceedings against those who do not pay their tax debts. We also help our taxpayers who are well-intentioned but fall into difficult situations in paying their debts through installment plans. There may be taxpayers who work and produce but fall into very difficult situations in paying their debts. Our tax offices are meeting with all taxpayers for the 113.8 billion liras that have collection capability and are providing the necessary facilities for them to pay their debts."