MAIN opposition party DISY yesterday tabled a bill mandating that all citizens submit a statement of assets every seven years.
The proposed legislation is intended to complement a bill tabled by DISY recently forcing all gainfully employed persons to file tax returns, after revelations that half of the working population does not have a tax file. Currently a vast swathe of the population – those earning under €19,000 –is not required to submit tax returns.
DISY MP Averof Neophytou said the statement of assets would list all movable and immovable property, including bank deposits, bonds, shares, villas, plots of land, even valuable paintings and gold bars.
“In this way,” he said, “the state will know the real wealth which people own, exposing the tax cheats.”
Addressing privacy concerns, Neophytou said this would not be an issue since those filing a statement of assets would be obliged to procure from their bank documentation on their loans and deposits.
The statement of assets form would be submitted to the Inland Revenue Department (IRD).
He said IRD would be able to cross-check the information supplied on the assets form with data held by any government agency, such as Land Registry.
It is hoped that the new regulations will weed out tax cheats. For example, if a person has declared income lower than the €19,000 per annum taxable threshold, authorities would be able to cross-check with Land Registry whether that person has purchased any immovable property during the tax period in question. That in turn would expose any discrepancies between the declared income and assets.
Neophytou said also that his party is considering drafting legislation providing for more severe penalties for tax evaders.
The state is owed about €400 million in unpaid income tax; in addition to that, authorities suspect that millions more are owed by people without tax records.