Doctors Biggest Tax Dodgers Among Professionals

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According to the Inland Revenue Board, the bulk of professionals who dodge paying taxes are doctors.

  • 4,610 professionals scrutinised – 3,000 doctors, 1,287 engineers, 142 architects, 182 lawyers
  • Under-declared taxes – doctors RM1.111b, engineers RM3.83m, architects RM1.181m, lawyers RM7.39m
  • Tax-defaulting companies that don’t pay up will be wound up
  • First 7 months of this year, IRB applied to wind up 152 errant companies owing RM114.7m
  • IRB winding up listed company soon for defaulting on RM42m tax payment
Representational image

In its tax audit operation for the first eight months of this year, the Inland Revenue Board (IRB) revealed that doctors make up the bulk of tax dodgers.

According to a report in Oriental Daily News yesterday, IRB audited 4,610 professionals, including doctors, engineers, architects and lawyers, this year up to August,

A total of 3,000 doctors’ tax accounts were scrutinised, accounting for almost two-thirds of the total 4,610 professionals audited. The others included 1,287 engineers, and 141 architects, and 182 lawyers

The additional assessments and penalties imposed on errant professionals for under-declaring their taxes amount to RM1.158 billion, with doctors accounting for RM1.111 billion.

The additional assessments and penalties imposed on tax dodgers from other professional groups are RM3.83 million for engineers, RM1.181 million for architects, and RM7.39 million for lawyers.

However, not all 4,610 professionals audited were tax dodgers and the audit carried out on these individuals was part of IRB’s routine tax audit exercise.

IRB chief executive officer Datuk Sabin Samitah told the daily that although the board had announced last month that it would launch a tax audit operation on professionals either this month or the next, it has always been conducting investigations on professionals suspected to be under-declaring or evading taxes.

Fariz Iswadi Ismail

On tax-defaulting companies which refused to pay up, Sabin said IRB could apply to the court to wind up these companies. He said that for the first seven months of this year IRB has applied to wind up 152 errant companies which owed a total of RM114.7 million in additional assessments and penalties.

He also said the board will be applying to wind up a listed company for defaulting on tax payment amounting to RM42 million. He added that the company’s businesses include tours, hotel and services and manufacturing golf balls.