Seychelles authorities brush up on tax crimes in "Tax Inspectors Without Borders for Criminal Investigation" event
General |Author: Sedrick Nicette Edited By: Betymie Bonnelame | November 6, 2024, Wednesday @ 09:19| 1343 views
The key objectives for Seychelles are to advance tax transparency and international cooperation in combatting tax evasion. (401(K) 2012) Photo Licence: CC BY-SA 2.0
With the aim to better prevent and detect tax crimes in Seychelles, several organisations are attending a four-day training programme launched on Monday.
The "Tax Inspectors Without Borders for Criminal Investigation" (TIWB-CI) is a technical assistance programme aimed at strengthening tax crime frameworks and enhancing the resolution of tax crime cases.
It is being led by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), along with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the African Tax Administration Forum (ATAF).
Among the agencies participating are the Seychelles Revenue Commission (SRC), the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), the Seychelles Police Service, and the Financial Services Authority (FSA).
The key objectives for Seychelles are to advance tax transparency and international cooperation in combatting tax evasion and ensuring tax fairness, while also equipping tax officials with the necessary skills to navigate the complexities of criminal tax non-compliance.
The programme will also help Seychelles to deter tax non-compliance through a whole of government approach, involving collaboration between different government departments.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, the Commissioner General of the SRC, Varsha Singh, outlined the importance of tax collection, stating that without tax revenue, the state will not be able to deliver services to its citizens.
"Investigations capability serves a dual purpose, one in terms of recuperating taxes that are deliberately withheld by taxpayers, as well as being a deterrent for tax non-compliance," added Singh.
Tax Inspectors Without Borders (TIWB) is a joint initiative of the OECD and the UNDP supporting countries in building tax audit capacity.
TIWB Programmes complement the broader efforts of the international community to strengthen cooperation on tax matters and contribute to the domestic resource mobilisation efforts of developing countries.
Speaking virtually at the opening of the training, Marcos Rosa, the TIWB team lead, explained that the programme requires active engagement from all agencies involved in financial crimes investigations across the country.
"Our last annual report notes that through TIWB support, developing countries generated an additional $2.3 billion in tax revenues and over $6 billion in tax assessed," said Roca.
He added that utilising the country-driven approach of the TIWB programme will allow Seychelles to tailor the programme to the country's specific needs, which will then be used to inform the action plan that will be developed after the training.