Tax Information Concealment: Tribunal Orders Union Bank to Pay Cross River Revenue Service N56m
Union Bank Plc has lost a landmark case it instituted against the The Cross River Internal Revenue Service (South-South zone) sitting in Benin, Edo State over tax information concealment at the Tax Appeal Tribunal .
The Tax Appeal Tribunal had ruled on November 11, 2020 that the relevant tax authority can request any information it deems relevant from a tax payer, and it is not the taxpayer’s place to determine which information is relevant or not.
Secondly, by virtue of the relevant provisions of PITA, 2011 (as amended), a tax payer cannot withhold any requested information from the tax authority on the grounds of confidentiality.
The appeal tribunal, therefore, upheld the additional assessment Notice of Withholding Tax on interest payment served by the Cross River Internal Revenue Service on Union Bank Plc.
Union Bank Plc had on November 4, 2019 filed an appeal before the tribunal contending amongst other things, that the assessment is excessive and arbitrary and that it is ultra vires the powers of the tax authority to demand records and documents, including the nationwide data of the appellants’ customers not within the tax jurisdiction.
In upholding, the respondent’s assessment notice, the tribunal held that the law in section 46, 47, 49, 55 and 58 of the Personal Income Tax Act 2011 (PITA) (as amended) does not limit the tax authority to call for any particular kind of information, but such documents and information as the relevant tax authority may deem necessary.
The tribunal further held that it is not in the place of the appellant to determine for the tax authority which information is relevant or not unless such demands conflict with statutory rights of the tax payer or the extant provision of the law.
The tribunal also held that the law has mandated taxpayers to release information on request by the tax authority and that the tax authority is empowered to call for information as often as possible.
The tribunal, therefore, ruled that the appellant (Union Bank Plc) should pay CRIRS the total sum of N56, 672, 908.27 (Fifty-six million, six hundred and seventy-two thousand, nine hundred and eight naira, twenty-seven kobo only) as outstanding Withholding Tax on interest expense, penalty and interest thereon.
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