VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

At least 46 partner countries will help Indonesia collect taxes from taxpayers abroad once the bill on the amendment to the law on general provisions and taxation procedures is passed into law.



Director general of taxation at the Finance Ministry, Suryo Utomo, made the remarks at a meeting of the working committee of Commission XI of the House of Representatives (DPR) in Jakarta on Monday.



"Right now, we have signed 13 avoidance of double taxation agreements (with other countries). So we can collect taxes from the authorities of other countries and the other way around," he said.



Indonesia has signed avoidance of double taxation agreements with Algeria, the United States, Armenia, the Netherlands, Belfia, the Philippines, India, Laos, Egypt, Suriname, Jordan, Venezuela, and Vietnam.



Utomo said 141 countries have also signed the Mutual Administrative Assistance Convention in Tax Matter ( MAC), while 46 partner countries have agreed to assist each other in collecting taxes.




However, the rules cannot be implemented in the absence of a legal basis, he added.



Hence, through the amendment to the general provisions and taxation procedure law, the Indonesian government will include clauses in the agreements with other countries related to assistance in tax collection on a reciprocal basis, Utomo elaborated.



"Admittedly, the general provisions and taxation procedures law makes no mention of (any) clause allowing us (to collect taxes on a reciprocal basis). Because of the limitation, we have tried to propose (an amendment to) it," he said.



He proposed the inclusion of new Article 20A in the bill, which will give the Directorate General of Taxation the authority to seek assistance from partner countries in collecting taxes.



The directorate general will also be able to ask partner countries to collect taxes on a reciprocal basis by enforcing a distress warrant, in accordance with the tax collection law, he said. (Antaranews)