Tobacco Firm Fined $181 Million in Turkey

The Turkish tax inspection authority has issued a record fine of 6 billion Turkish Liras ($181.2 million) to a tobacco manufacturer for unreported revenue. This is part of a comprehensive audit of large taxpayers by the Treasury and Finance Ministry.

In accordance with Minister Mehmet Şimşek’s principle of “taxing the wealthy more,” inspectors from the Tax Audit Board have been conducting ongoing audits. They have started thorough tax inspections using the “yield analysis” method to determine the actual production output of businesses.

This method involves analyzing the materials used in manufacturing, other production inputs, finished goods, and outputs that should have been produced. As a result, a yield analysis and inventory audit were carried out for a company involved in tobacco production.

The calculations considered the capacity and operational hours of the cigarette production lines, along with the company’s consumption data for natural gas, tobacco, and cigarette filters. The audit results revealed that the company had generated unreported revenue, according to media reports.

Certain documents within the company were not included in the legal ledger records and declarations. Moreover, the authorities determined that excise and value-added taxes on the cigarettes, despite being invoiced, were not reflected in the declarations.

After the audit, the company was fined around 6 billion Liras, and the amount is expected to increase due to late payment interest. The minister announced that tax inspectors have started simultaneous inspections of 707 jewelers in nine major cities.