Tax checks raise half billion less
The state made €14.7bn after check ups on tax declarations in 2009, a report shows, down half a billion on last year
CHECKS by the authorities on income tax declarations brought in half a billion euros less than last year an official report shows.
The amount recuperated, €14.7bn, is down from €15.2bn in 2008 and €16.4bn in 2007.
Out of the money collected last year, €4.8bn followed demands for extra documentation, while €9.9 billion followed checks in person. The latter brought in slightly more than last year while the former brought in less.
In total the government raised €49bn for 2008 via income tax.
Personal visits are mainly carried out on businesses, with 51,615 taking place in 2009. This figure also included 3,912 checks on private individuals, bringing in €577 million – slightly more than last year.
There were 939 charges brought for tax fraud.
The report also shows that nearly one million people, 9% more than in 2008, made use of demandes gracieuses - requests for lowered tax because of financial difficulty. More than half of these concerned the taxe d’habitation or television tax.
There were also 3.8 million applications from people contesting their tax bills, slightly up on last year.
Photo: Arto-fotolia.com
