Managers Of Max Mart, Palace Mall, Second Cup Coffee Arrested For Tax Non-Compliance

The Managers of the East Legon branch of Max Mart shopping centre, Community 25 branch of Palace shopping mall, and Second Cup Coffee shop at Dzorwulu have been arrested and detained by the Ghana Revenue Authority for non-compliance with tax laws and bypassing the Electronic VAT Invoicing system.

The three managers are made up of two foreigners and a Ghanaian. According to GRA, the managers of the respective malls deliberately outsmarted the Electronic VAT Invoicing system by recording multiple sales of items under one unit. Per GRA’s directive, each unit of an item sold from the shop should attract a separate VAT invoice in order to adequately account for taxes paid by customers.

As part of the exercise, GRA has resolved to unravel all illegalities to ensure the right taxes are paid. The arrest comes after the Manager of the Spintex road branch of China Mall was arrested by the task force over non-payment of taxes on Monday. The manager of Sneda Mall on Spintex Road was also arrested by the task force for the same offence.

In October 2022, the GRA shut down some branches of China Mall over non-compliance with Ghana’s electronic VAT system. GRA has embarked on a special operation to clamp down on companies defaulting on their tax commitments. According to the GRA, a number of taxpayers have failed to file their returns through the authority’s certified invoicing system thus dwindling the revenue collection for the state. Frank Annan, the team lead for the Taskforce said all the managers arrested will be duly prosecuted.