Some 2,000 foreign companies pay no taxes

Some 2,000 foreign companies in Indonesia did not pay taxes in the past 10 years on the pretext of having suffered losses, Finance Minister Bambang Brodjonegoro reported to President Joko Widodo (Jokowi).

“They always claimed that they suffered losses,” the minister said at the Presidential Office here on Monday.

Several of the foreign companies should have paid an average of Rp25 billion in taxes per year, he said.
As a result, the state lost Rp500 trillion in taxes during the past 10 years, he said.
He said the government will make every effort to minimize tax evasion.
The minister also reported to the president that many residents who have more than one income source do not comply with tax obligation.

“Only 900 thousand of 5 million taxpayers really pay taxes. In total, they pay almost Rp9 trillion in taxes,” he said.

He said the Finance Ministry, through the Directorate General of Taxation, will coordinate with the Center for Financial Transaction Report and Analysis (PPATK) to trace the transaction data of taxpayers.
PPATK Chief Muhammad Yusuf said the center is committed to helping the Directorate General of Taxation.

“Everyday, PATK receives reports of 150 thousand financial transactions. We are trying to develop this information, analyze it and cooperate with the tax authorities so that we can take certain steps,” he said.