Germain, Director General of Taxes. |
The tax authorities are going on the offensive. The tax administration indicates that it has issued notices to third party holders in order to recover tax arrears which have not yet been paid by nine companies.
Tax breaches at the origin. Nine companies are currently in the crosshairs of the General Tax Directorate (DGI). This issued notices to third party holders (ATD) on the bank accounts of these companies. These companies must pay tax arrears of a more or less significant amount. This is what the tax administration is announcing, which is thus tightening tax recovery procedures.
According to the Directorate General of Taxes, “this measure will allow the tax administration to claim through a third party the arrears owed by the companies concerned”. However, this does not happen at the wave of a magic wand. These companies appear to have had difficulty paying their tax arrears for some time. Procedures have also been carried out to alert them of their tax situation. The DGI indicates that it followed the procedures for recovery actions before reaching this point. “They (the companies concerned, editor’s note) had made their tax declaration, but did not pay it,” confides the Director General of Taxes, Germain, during the conference devoted to the development of the 2024-2028 tax strategy.
Sursis
According to the DGI, these companies could have requested a suspension of payment but would not have done so. No indication has yet emerged on the amount of these arrears.
A reality that the country must face. Every year, 1,400 billion ariary is lost due to the gap between taxes owed by taxpayers and those paid to the tax administration. Thus, the DGI carries out tax audits and recovers tax arrears as described in its powers. A tool to measure tax performance as well. Dialogues are nevertheless undertaken between companies and the tax authorities. The aim is to facilitate the payment of taxes. “We have set up a management dialogue, which is already institutionalized. We are discussing through this dialogue with economic operators to see how they can pay their taxes, especially when they find themselves in financial difficulties,” concedes the DGI.
Itamara Randriamamonjy
TAX ARREARS – The General Tax Directorate is tightening the screws
ProRail is going through its costs with a dust comb – what can the rail manager save on?
#ProRail #costs #dust #comb #rail #manager #save
As soon as snow and ice are forecast in winter, rail manager ProRail turns on the point heaters. Then the gas burners burn everywhere on the Dutch railway and the trains can continue running despite the bad weather.
But are those burners still necessary now that the climate is warming, the average number of winter days is decreasing and we want to get rid of expensive fossil natural gas? Shouldn’t train passengers accept that on a few chilly winter days the train runs (much) less?
ProRail, which manages the railways in the Netherlands, is going through the costs with a dust comb. At the request of the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management, the organization takes a critical look at all its expenditure. To the point heaters, for example, or the cleaning of stations, the management of bicycle sheds, or the maintenance of railway lines. Can’t lines that only run (light) slow trains require less maintenance than lines that also run heavy freight trains and high-speed trains?
Pro Rail is negotiating with the ministry about a ‘basic quality level’ of rail: what minimum service can travelers and shippers expect
John Voppen, CEO of ProRail, does not want to call it cutbacks (yet). And certainly not a ‘cheese slicer’, he said on Thursday in Utrecht during the presentation of ProRail’s annual report for 2023. Voppen is negotiating intensively with the ministry about a ‘basic quality level’ of rail. Such a BKN states what minimum services travelers and shippers who have their goods transported by rail can expect. And what that may cost. For the road The ministry and Rijkswaterstaat have already drawn up a BKN.
Quality requirements
The discussion about a minimum service forces the rail manager, ministry and political parties to make explicit what we want with the railway, says Voppen. He hopes to avoid grand vistas and wild dreams without an accompanying budget.
It is still unclear how much money the critical look at the costs will generate. But, Voppen said on Thursday in Utrecht, it will in any case not be enough to cover all the necessary investments for the coming years. ProRail is short a “few hundred million euros” for the period between 2026 and 2030. And from 2030 there will be a similar size gap.
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“The population will grow in the coming years,” said Voppen. “There will be more demand for mobility. But if we do not invest in the railways – and, for example, in the congestion on the electricity network – the railway will become full. Then people get in the car, but the highways are also full.”
Negotiations between ProRail and the ministry must be completed before the summer. It must then be clear how much budget ProRail has available from 2027. It will also become clear whether there is still sufficient money for all kinds of rail expansions or whether – just like for the road – there is only a budget for maintenance.
In 2023, ProRail invested 1.49 billion euros in rail projects (maintenance and expansions). In 2025 and 2026, this will increase to almost 1.9 billion euros. All the work on the track – plus the shortage of equipment and maintenance personnel – has caused problems in recent months for a lot of inconvenience, including on the high-speed line (HSL) between Amsterdam and Rotterdam. ProRail did not meet the performance agreements with the ministry in 2023. The organization therefore expects a fine of 2 to 3 million euros. Performance also remains below par in the first months of this year.
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ProRail is going through its costs with a dust comb – what can the rail manager save on?
Force majeure notice to Pakistan by Chinese company working on Dasu project – Business & Economy
Almost two weeks after the terrorist attack on Chinese engineers in Shangla, the Chinese company working on the Dasu Hydropower Project has issued a ‘force majeure’ notice to Pakistan.
This notice is a big blow for Pakistan.
A force majeure notice is usually issued after a natural disaster and means that an event has occurred that was beyond the control of the contracting parties and has resulted in the work not being completed or not being completed on time. The party concerned cannot be held responsible.
On March 26, a suicide bomber rammed a convoy of Chinese engineers traveling from Islamabad to Dasu, killing five Chinese engineers and their Pakistani driver.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry demanded a comprehensive investigation from Pakistan and punishment of those responsible for the attack, besides ensuring the security of Chinese citizens.
The Chinese company is laying a 765 kV transmission line. Sources say the project is already behind the World Bank deadline and the new notice may increase its cost.
Following the Chinese company’s notice, Daso’s chief engineer has sought guidance from NTDC’s chief law officer.
He said that the Chinese company says that the work has been affected after the attack, which may further slow down and may even be suspended.
Force majeure notice to Pakistan by Chinese company working on Dasu project – Business & Economy
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