The Council of Ministers issued Decision 11/2024 dated December 4, 2024 about the joint mechanism that the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Justice suggested to implement Law 240 of July 16, 2021 about submitting the beneficiaries of the government’s subsidies in US dollars, or their equivalent in other foreign currencies, to an external forensic audit. The Ministry of Finance indicated that the framework is as follows:  First, preparing the terms of reference to select and retain forensic and financial auditors. Second, Banque du Liban (BdL) prepares detailed lists of the traders and importers who benefited from the government’s subsidies of imported goods in US dollars, in addition to the amounts of the subsidies, in order to submit them to the forensic and financial auditors.  Third, once the Finance Ministry receives the names of the beneficiaries, it will prepare a list of the income tax that they have to pay or that they have paid, and a list of all the documents of the customs formalities related to the subsidized products that the traders imported, in order to submit them to the forensic and financial auditors.  Fourth, setting the mechanism to receive the information from Banque du Liban. Fifth, reviewing the income tax and value-added tax information of the list of persons that BdL submits.  Sixth, submitting to the proper judicial authorities the results of the files that have been studied, in case there are doubts that the concerned traders deliberately did not comply with the tax requirements. Seventh, presenting to the forensic and financial auditors all the documents about the customs formalities related to the subsidized goods that were imported by the individuals who are subject to the forensic and financial audits.  Eighth, after the external forensic and financial auditors submit their reports to the judicial authorities, the tax administration can review the information to assess the taxes due to the Treasury and can, after the expiration of the legal deadline, impose a tax on the profits or revenues that have been corroborated by a court ruling. It noted that the tax administration can implement this procedure until the end of the calendar year that follows the year during which it is informed of the court ruling. Also, The Council of Minsters indicated that it has approved the mechanism, pending the input and observations of the Consultative Council. (ICE BEIRUT)

Fonte notizia: Byblos Bank, December 2-7 Dec, 2024