PRESS RELEASE

(Source : Information Services Department)

Community service order for ex-senior system engineer over tax evasion

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     A taxpayer, convicted on September 4 at the Fanling Magistrates' Courts on four charges of evading property tax and salaries tax, was sentenced today (October 2) to 160 hours' community service and fined a total of $75,420. The fine imposed is equivalent to treble the amount of the tax evaded.

    The defendant, aged 33, is a former senior system engineer of a bank. He pleaded guilty to four counts of evading tax, wilfully with intent, by omitting rental income and making false statements in connection with claims for deduction of home loan interest in his tax returns for the years of assessment 2009-10 and 2010-11, contrary to section 82(1)(a) and section 82(1)(c) of the Inland Revenue Ordinance (IRO) (Cap 112).

    The court heard that during the material times, the defendant owned a property in Kowloon which had been let out since June 25, 2009. In his tax returns for the years of assessment 2009-10 and 2010-11, the defendant claimed deductions of home loan interest in respect of the property and made false statement that the property was his residence for the period between April 1, 2010, and March 31, 2011.

    An investigation by the Inland Revenue Department (IRD) revealed that the defendant omitted rental income of $190,800 and made false statements in connection with claims for deduction of home loan interest in the amount of $234,500 in his tax returns for the two years of assessment 2009-10 and 2010-11. The total amount of tax evaded was $25,140.

    A spokesman for the IRD reminded taxpayers that tax evasion is a criminal offence under the IRO. Upon conviction, the maximum penalty for each charge is three years' imprisonment and a fine of $50,000 plus a further fine of three times the amount of tax evaded.

Ends/Wednesday, October 2, 2013
Issued at HKT 15:06

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