COPENHAGEN, Aug 26 — Denmark’s tax authority said today it had alerted police after foreign companies appeared to have drained €804 million (RM3.89 billion) from the system in what would be the country’s biggest-ever tax fraud.
“Over the summer we became suspicious after receiving information from a foreign authority,” said Jesper Ronnow Simonsen, head of the Skat tax agency.
“Our own internal investigations have strengthened our suspicions and we have therefore turned the case over to the police,” he said in a statement.
Danish police confirmed the investigation, saying the case - which involves a sum of 6.2 billion kroner (RM4.03 billion) - was top priority.
A Skat spokesman was not willing to disclose which country had flagged up the matter to Denmark which involves a sum of some 6.2 billion kroner.
The case involves yields on stock in Danish companies paid to foreign companies.
Yields normally carry a 27 per cent tax in Denmark.
Under double taxation agreements, however, foreign companies based abroad are liable for a refund of part or all of the Danish tax, if they have paid tax on the yield in their country of domicile.
“The expected criminal fraud in refunds has so far been calculated based on 2,120 individual claims totalling some 6.2 billion kroner in the 2012 to 2015 period,” Skat said.
The Danish police’s Special Economic and International Crime unit (SOIK) said the case was a top priority.
“The treasury and society have possibly been robbed of very considerable funds... We have a major investigation ahead of us. I envisage a long hard haul to find out what has happened,” National Prosecutor Morten Niels Jacobsen said in a statement.
Neither the tax authority nor the SOIK would disclose any information on the cases, or name any of the companies involved. — AFP
