Turkish Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek announced that the government will soon release the names of taxpayers with outstanding tax debts and penalties of 5 million Turkish Liras or more to each tax office.

Şimşek urged taxpayers with significant debts to settle their dues by the end of September to avoid public disclosure. "We continue to take steps to strengthen tax justice. We have given instructions to announce the lists of taxpayers with unpaid tax and penalty debts even though they are overdue," Şimşek stated. "We will share with the public the names of taxpayers with tax debts and penalties of 5 million liras or more to each tax office."

According to the minister, the names of these taxpayers will be published across all tax offices in Türkiye between October 15 and 31, 2024. Additionally, the Revenue Administration will publish these lists online between November 1 and 15, 2024.

The upcoming General Communiqué on the Tax Procedure Law will outline the procedures and principles for these disclosures, Şimşek noted. Two separate lists will be published: one for taxpayers with overdue taxes and penalties as of December 31, 2023, that remain unpaid as of September 30, 2024, and another for those whose taxes and penalties, determined by tax inspections or the appreciation commission, were finalized between June 1, 2023, and May 31, 2024, regardless of their debt status.

Şimşek highlighted that taxpayers still have a one-month window to avoid being included in these lists, commonly referred to as “tax cheats” in public discourse. "We give time until the end of September for taxpayers who do not want their names to be included in the ‘tax cheats’ lists we will announce," he warned.

This initiative is part of the government’s broader effort to enhance transparency and ensure fair tax compliance across the country. (ILKHA)