Tax is a mandatory contribution imposed on individuals or organizations by the federal entity of a country. This, in turn, keeps the revenue of the country in check, and the tax levied from the citizens is used for various activities such as public works and services including roads, public transport, schools, healthcare social security, and the like. There are various rules when it comes to paying the tax. The authority will consider the revenue of an individual or a company before deciding the payable tax. And here is where the tax evasion comes in. An illegal non-payment and underpayment with the help of fraudulent documentation are stated as tax evasion. Individuals and businesses try to deconstruct their profit to pay a lesser amount of tax. 

Tax violations and evasion are not something new. Since time immemorial, businesses or individuals have attempted tax evasion. By this, they aim to keep their profits for themselves. Every citizen or business is obliged to pay the taxes and the authority has certain sets of rules that will keep their payments in check. And one such initiative by the UAE Federal Tax Authority is Raqeeb. 

What is Raqeeb?

Raqeeb, the “whistle-blower program for tax breaches and evasion,”  launched by the Federal Tax Authority was put into effect on April 15, 2022.  With the program, the authority aims to promote community control over local markets, thereby increasing tax compliance in the UAE, and reducing tax evasion incidents.

The implementation of the whistle-blower program for tax violations and evasion, Raqeeb, also allows the authority to accept reports from individuals on tax evasion cases, tax-related fraud, and violations of tax legislation. To add to this, per some conditions, it also permits the authority to verify the reports and award monetary rewards to informers for tax amounts worth more than AED50,000. 

According to the reports, the launch of Raqeeb is to improve transparency and competitiveness in the business domain, increase tax submission rates, tax awareness, and society’s trust in the tax system. With the program, individuals will be more confident and motivated to act on their social commitments and contribute to fighting tax violations. 

The Authority urged all members of the community to join in the endeavor by using the program, which provides a simple and obvious way to tax breach reporting. The reports can be filed via the authority website which constitutes a comprehensive guide on the program. The guide demonstrates how to report, rules, and process to receive the monetary rewards for reporting. 

Confidential Raqeeb

One of the best parts of the program is that the tax violation reporting process abides by strict nondisclosure standards. This ensures that the informants’ identities will be classified and will never be revealed to third parties. Thus, they are completely protected and immune from any harm as a result of having to carry out their social obligations. 

What you should have as an informant?

Being an informant is not an effortless job. As an informant, you cannot just assume or be partially sure about the tax violation cases you are planning to report. The authority has listed the requirements for your tax violation report to be valid. 

• A proper proof to support a tax violation report
• Documents that affirm your report
• Verification of the scenario presented in the report

If you are an informant with all this documentation in hand you can file your reports without any hassle. In case you are finding it difficult to affirm the tax violation, you can always get the assistance of financial support services who will be able to guide you to a conclusion on the same. 

Benefits of the Raqeeb program 

Less Tax evasion

With the new Raqeeb program, the amount of tax evasion can be brought drown to a great extent. With the program established businesses and individuals will also be on their toes, trying not to make any mistakes or trying to be an informant.  

Benefits 

The benefits of being an informant will not be neglected by anyone thus, most individuals or businesses will be doing their part to bring tax evasion under control. Moreover, if they have a competitor eluding the law, no business will not want to be an informant.

Being an informant or a taxpayer, with a financial service provider at hand with expertise in taxing changes the whole game. You will not only be able to take a wise decision as a business but also affirm the documentation as an informant. So, get your finance right, now!