Two Business Partners Penalised for Under-reporting Income and GST

3 Aug 2020

Koh Che Song (“Koh”), 77, and Yeo Soh Khim (“Yeo”), 62, two business partners of Unique International Agencies (“UIA”) which manufactures glass reinforced concrete (“GRC”) for buildings, have been convicted for under-reporting a total of $2.4 million in net income in UIA’s Income Tax returns for Years of Assessment (YAs) 2012 to 2016, resulting in $439,768 and $28,157 in taxes undercharged for Koh and Yeo respectively. In addition, they have been found guilty of understating UIA’s net GST payable amounting to $82,620 in its Goods and Services Tax (GST) returns for 11 quarters during the period between 2011 and 2016.

Court Sentences (Proceeded Charges)

Koh pleaded guilty to a total of sixteen proceeded charges on both the Income Tax and GST offences. Koh was sentenced to $26,000 in fines and $1,044,775 in penalties, which is twice the amount of taxes undercharged.

Yeo, on the other hand, pleaded guilty to a total of six proceeded charges on both Income Tax and GST offences. The case for Yeo has been adjourned to 7 Sep 2020 for sentencing. 

Penalties for Non-Compliance

IRAS Warns Against Tax Evasion

IRAS takes a serious view of non-compliance and tax evasion. There will be severe penalties for those who wilfully evade tax. The authority will not hesitate to bring offenders to court. Offenders may face a penalty of up to four times the amount of tax evaded. Jail terms may also be imposed. IRAS takes a serious view of fraudulent GST refund claims. IRAS will not hesitate to take stern enforcement actions against any individuals and parties involved.

Cash Rewards for Informants

A reward based on 15% of the tax recovered, capped at $100,000, would be given to informants if the information and/or documents provided lead to a recovery of tax that would have otherwise been lost. All payments are at the discretion of the Comptroller. IRAS will ensure that the identities of informants are kept strictly confidential.

Reporting of Malpractices

Businesses or individuals are encouraged to immediately disclose any past tax mistakes. IRAS will treat such disclosures as mitigating factors when considering action to be taken. Those who wish to disclose past mistakes or report malpractices can write to:

Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore
Investigation & Forensics Division
55 Newton Road, Revenue House
Singapore 307987

Email: ifd@iras.gov.sg

Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore