GRA can conduct post audits, Attorney General confirms

Attorney General Anil Nandlall has pointed out that the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) is empowered to conduct “post audits” of transactions in an effort to recover revenues owed to the State.
He made this comment during his programme Issues in the News last evening.
“The GRA has always had the power to review the assessment of duty and taxes. It is called a post-audit power. It is in the law, and any businessman who has had any relationship with the Guyana Revenue Authority would be aware of that power,” Nandlall stated.
Given that the establishment has this power, it is operating in accordance with the law in the case of tax breaches by United States-sanctioned businessman Azruddin Mohamed and his family.
However, according to Nandlall, the body will need to provide answers for its initial under-estimation of taxes on the importation of luxury vehicles by the family several years ago.
“The GRA will have to explain, or an officer who made that assessment will have to explain why the assessment was done in the way it was. But that doesn’t prevent the GRA from reviewing the situation. Parliament, by law, has given them that power,” he said.
The Attorney General also highlighted that it was Azruddin Mohamed who drew the GRA’s attention to underpaid taxes through a social media post. This led to an investigation being launched by the GRA a few days later.
According to reports, the total taxes owed by the family amount to nearly $900 million.