Tax evasion, critical cooperation between agencies - OECD program presented. Binaj: We achieve the highest standards in tax investigation
Inter-agency cooperation is critical for tax investigations and the fight against tax evasion. The OECD and UNDP “Tax Inspectors Without Borders” criminal investigation program, which has been providing support to developing countries for years, has been introduced in Albania, with the aim of promoting inter-agency cooperation in detecting tax crimes, but also to draft a set of recommendations to fill the gap that currently exists.
The Head of the General Directorate of Taxes, which is also the host institution of this program, stated that tax enforcement agencies should be strengthened to align with best practices.
“This workshop will bring more competences and professionalism to the Albanian Tax Administration and we are very grateful for the support provided by the OECD, the Guardia di Finanza and all other partners. As a tax administration, enforcement is a very important part of our work, which is why since I was appointed to this position a year ago I have wanted to strengthen this function as one of my main priorities. Our goal towards taxpayers is not to penalize them, but to educate them. It is important that we learn from each other, how to achieve the highest standards of cooperation” , said Ilir Binaj.
Also present was the Director General of Customs, Genti Gazheli, according to whom cooperation between law enforcement agencies should move to another stage, where the relevant investigators share more information with each other.
"Cooperation between our law enforcement agencies must move to a more advanced stage to respond to the challenges of the time. Of course, evasion cannot be fought in isolation, by each agency separately. No matter how successful we are in our daily lives, since the chain of evasion avoidance begins as smuggling at customs at the moment of importing goods, it will necessarily continue as evasion in tax structures and will necessarily be evaded or make false declarations in the movement of money," said Gazheli.
Meanwhile, the Director of Tax Investigation, Anton Martini, listed some of Albania's challenges in having a more efficient fight against tax evasion.
"Increasing the quality of human resources and their training, preparing for an efficient confrontation with the digital economy, increasing cooperation between local and cross-border factors, applying advanced technology methods, using artificial intelligence ," emphasized Martini.
International representatives stated that the challenges in investigating fiscal crimes also come from the high level of physical money currently circulating, while expressing, among other things, that the fight against tax evasion is not only about earning more revenue, but also about ensuring more justice.
This program will be implemented in our country for a period of 2 years.
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