SINGAPORE - A 46-year-old foreigner was found on Wednesday (Dec 15) to be in possession of undeclared Singapore and foreign currencies totalling $31,023. He was among 23 travellers who arrived at Changi Airport that day and were hauled up for failing to declare cash of more than $20,000, or failing to pay taxes on cigarettes, liquor and other items. The police, Immigration and Checkpoints Authority and Singapore Customs said on Friday (Dec 17) that the travellers were caught following a seven-hour operation at Terminals 1 and 3. The agencies added that they will be conducting more operations with the easing of travel restrictions. "All travellers are reminded that the authorities will not tolerate any illegal activities as we strive to safeguard our land, air and sea borders against crime and security threats, including smuggling activities and non-compliance with our regulations," they said. The 23 travellers detained include a 57-year-old foreigner who failed to declare the $25,000 of Singapore and foreign currencies he had on him. Another 21 people did not declare and pay taxes on cigarettes or tobacco products and liquor in excess of their duty-free allowance, as well as new articles, souvenirs, gifts and food items exceeding their goods and services tax (GST) relief allowance. The agencies reminded members of the public that they are required to declare the physical movement of any currency or bearer negotiable instruments, which include cheques, money orders and bearer bonds, into or out of Singapore if the total value exceeds $20,000, or its equivalent in foreign currency. Failing to do so could result in a fine of up to $50,000, a jail term of up to three years, or both. Those convicted of evading any Customs or excise duty can be fined up to 20 times the amount of duty and GST evaded. Travellers or returning Singaporeans are encouraged to make an advance declaration and payment for their dutiable or GST goods up to three days before they arrive here at this website. More on this topic Related Story Fine for woman who failed to declare $800,000 in cash brought into S'pore Related Story Man fined for not declaring $1.18 million in cash moved in and out of Singapore
SINGAPORE - A man who sold mobile phones has become the first person in Singapore to be charged with failing to register the goods and services tax (GST) for online sales. Edwin Pang Chung Jie used to own two firms - Edmobile and Moggi - through which he sold mobile phones and accessories on platforms such as Lazada, Shopee and Carousell. The 40-year-old Singaporean was also charged on Friday (Oct 30) with two counts of submitting incorrect income tax returns without reasonable excuse, as well as two counts of failing to keep proper records of the invoices he received linked to his businesses. In a statement, the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (Iras) said that the total amount of tax undercharged and tax due is $129,411. On Oct 30, 2013, Pang allegedly failed to notify the Comptroller of GST of his liability to be registered for the tax. This is said to have resulted in $118,023.23 in tax due for the period between Dec 1, 2013, and Sept 30, 2015. Pang is accused of making an incorrect return by understating his income on April 16, 2014, resulting in income tax undercharged totalling $8,792.87. On April 16, 2018, he is said to have understated his income tax return by $26,336.27. This allegedly led to $2,595.74 in income tax undercharged. Pang is also accused of failing to keep proper records of the invoices on multiple occasions between Jan 1, 2013, and July 17, 2018. More on this topic Related Story Analysts expect big drop in corporate income tax, GST collections Related Story GST rate increase cannot be deferred indefinitely: Heng Swee Keat Iras said in its statement that between 2015 and last year, it recovered more than $3.8 million in taxes and penalties from 65 audit cases on taxpayers who operate online businesses. It added that like with regular bricks-and-mortar businesses, "all income from online and e-commerce businesses in Singapore must be reported for tax purposes". "To ensure that they pay the right amount of taxes, businesses should practise good record keeping by maintaining a full and complete physical or digital record of income and expenses such as invoices, receipts, vouchers, bank and credit card statements, bills, cheques, proof of payments and other documentary evidence," Iras said. The court heard that Pang intends to admit to his offences. His bail was set at $40,000 and he will be back in court on Nov 27. Failing to register for GST is an offence and errant businesses may have to pay 10 per cent of GST due as a penalty, and may incur a fine of up to $10,000.