The Treasury takes action! A new era in tax declarations: Don't miss these details

The process for annual income tax declarations, which must be filed every March, is currently underway.

Annual income tax declarations for 2024 regarding commercial, agricultural, and self-employment earnings, as well as rental income, wages, securities capital gains, and other earnings, must be submitted no later than Wednesday, April 2.

Minister of Treasury and Finance Mehmet Şimşek emphasized in his statement on the matter that the fight against the informal economy is being pursued with determination.

Şimşek stated, "In order to prevent informal economic activities and ensure tax justice, we will identify risky areas by utilizing advanced analysis techniques. We will strengthen tax awareness among taxpayers by increasing tax audits in the field."

"WE ARE ACTIVELY USING THE INVITATION TO EXPLAIN"

Stating that the 'invitation to explain' mechanism is being actively used to prevent tax losses, Şimşek made the following assessment:

“We are calling taxpayers identified as causing tax losses to explain themselves one by one. The declaration period for 2024 earnings has begun. Correctly declaring earnings is of great importance for the fair functioning of the tax system.

Executives from our Revenue Administration are conducting information campaigns in all provinces. Our colleagues are meeting with non-governmental organizations to explain the importance of accurate declarations and to emphasize our determination in the fight against the informal economy.”

PHYSICAL INSPECTIONS OF RESIDENCES

The Revenue Administration (GİB), which received approximately 1.8 million declarations last year for income such as rent, wages, and securities capital gains, aims for this number to exceed 2 million this year.

As of 2024, the Administration analyzed approximately 1.5 million residences to identify taxpayers who earn rental income and are required to file a declaration, and conducted physical inspections of 425 thousand residences. As a result of these efforts, 376 thousand new taxpayers filed declarations.

Within the scope of the Rental Declaration Form created via the Digital Tax Office, 38 thousand forms were filled out on a voluntary basis.

As a result of these analyses, legal proceedings were initiated against 20 thousand taxpayers who were found not to have filed rental declarations. Thus, the number of taxpayers filing declarations increased by 26 percent compared to last year.

INVESTIGATIONS FOR THOSE WHO DO NOT DECLARE RENTAL INCOME AT REAL VALUE

Thanks to these efforts, the tax base declared through the submitted declarations increased by 107 percent compared to the previous year, rising to 399.2 billion liras. The amount of tax to be paid reached 126.9 billion liras, an increase of 101 percent.

Additionally, approximately 55 thousand taxpayers were ensured to declare their rental income from previous years. A total of 3.1 billion liras in rental income was declared through these filings.

The Revenue Administration will continue to audit whether rental income is declared at its real value throughout 2024. In this context, taxpayers who provide incomplete or incorrect declarations will be subject to investigation.

Thanks to the regulations implemented, 3.7 million income tax declarations were collected in 2023, and 4.4 million in 2024. The Administration aims to further increase the number of declarations this year.

SMS REMINDERS TO TAXPAYERS

The Revenue Administration sent SMS messages to 1.5 million taxpayers to provide information about tax obligations.

In this context, those earning rental income exceeding the exemption limit, those receiving salaries over 3 million liras from a single employer, those obtaining capital gains due to real estate buying and selling within 5 years, and those earning securities capital gains from dividends were informed via SMS.

Furthermore, a reminder message regarding the declaration period was sent to 2.9 million people who are already income tax payers.

News Source: 12punto