A COMPANY audit during 2007 led to a €22.54 million corporation tax settlement, according to the 2007 report of the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG).
It is understood the payment arose because there was an "element of doubt" about the treatment of certain amounts within the books of a large corporation, leading to the payment. The name of the company concerned is not known.
A total of 3,875 comprehensive audits by the Revenue during 2007 yielded €344 million, with 28 per cent of the audits resulting in some tax being paid, according to the CAG report. "The results suggest that there is a risk that up to 30 per cent of taxpayers underdeclare the amount of tax due," the report states.
A special inquiry into tax compliance in the construction sector yielded €152 million, according to the report. That inquiry found 836 cases where there had been a failure to register for tax, and led to 247 subcontractors being reclassified as employees.
The CAG's report noted that it was Revenue's experience that 60 per cent of non-compliant taxpayers examined, continued to be non-compliant four years later.
The largest single amount written off by the Revenue Commissioners in 2007 was €2.9 million in PAYE/PRSI and VAT due from a recruitment industry group, according to the report. There were 11 other cases during the year in which the amount written off exceeded €1 million.
The CAG's office conducted a review of 20 of the highest write-offs. The report expressed concern that a high proportion of tax liabilities written off might be tax deducted from employees but not passed on to the Revenue.
It also expressed concern about the specific risks that existed in the security industry concerning untaxed payments being made to employees. Six of the cases reviewed were companies in the security industry, with the total involved being €6.7 million.
The report states the Revenue has completed a three-year review of the "door and event" security sector in the greater Dublin area. "The project indicated that non-compliance in the form of untaxed payments to employees is a feature of the industry."
During 2007 there were nine convictions for serious tax offences and though four resulted in prison sentences, the sentences were all suspended or rescinded. No one went to jail.
On the Revenue's various voluntary disclosure/special investigation schemes, the report said the total gathered by the end of June 2008 was €2,438 million. The highest yield was from the offshore assets inquiry, which yielded €918 million.
The Revenue found 190 cases where people who had availed of the Dirt voluntary disclosure scheme, also sought to avail of the subsequent offshore assets scheme. Under each of the schemes, persons who came forward were required to disclose all of their outstanding tax liabilities.
The Revenue found that 486 people were not eligible for the later life assurance products scheme, because of their having availed of earlier schemes.
Ineligible people had to pay an extra €50.8 million as a result of their not declaring all their liabilities in their first declaration to the Revenue.
It was also found that 286 people who had availed of the voluntary disclosure schemes had availed of the 1993 tax amnesty. Of these, 76 had the benefits of the 1993 amnesty withdrawn.
