GCC Tax Theatre | Oman Indirect Tax | Episode 08.9 | 07 April 2021 | Oman VAT Executive Regulations - Unofficial Translation (Part 9) | Tax Scrutiny

Title 9

Chapter 1

The tax control and scrutiny

Article (164)

In the application of the provision of Article (75) of the law, control shall be carried out on book and documentary basis, and in the event that the Taxable Person uses computer systems, the Authority shall examine and test these systems to ensure their safety and efficiency.

Article (165)

The authorized employees of the Authority shall have the capacity of the judicial seizure, the right to enter any place where the Taxable Person conducts the activity, the workplace or any other place related to the conduct of the activity, at any time during the official working hours for inspection and control, and they have the right to enter any automated or electronic system The Taxable Person uses it for the purposes of practicing the activity. In particular, they may review the records, notebooks and documents stipulated in this Regulation, copy copies of them, meet and discuss with employees, examine everything related to the technical, financial and administrative aspects related to the activity, and take any measures deemed necessary to achieve the purposes of the law, and the Taxable Person must provide everything they can in course of discharging their responsibility.

Article (166)

The Authority shall have the right to inspect and review the paper and electronic records of the Taxable Person, or any person carrying on the activity, in order to ensure compliance with the provisions of the law and Regulations.

Article 167

The employees of the General Administration of Customs follow-up and control the Goods when they are brought into or removed from the Sultanate.

The Authority may request from the importer any information related to imported or exported Goods.

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Article (168)

The tax Authority shall be notified of the date, location, and estimated period of the tax examination at least (15) fifteen days before this date, provided that the notification includes, in particular, the Tax Periods subject to examination and specifying the records, books and documents to be examined.

The Taxable Person may request a change of date within (5) five days of receiving the notification of the examination, provided that the request includes the reasons for the change.

The Authority may conduct a tax examination without prior notice if circumstances arise that raise serious doubts about the Taxable Person's evasion of the tax.

Chapter 2

Screening procedures

Article (169)

The tax examination must take place at the place of the taxpayer in which the activity is carried out, and during official working hours.

The examination may take place at the headquarters of the Authority in cases determined by the Chairman, and the Taxable Person in this case must provide the Authority with the records, books or documents he requests within the period specified in the notification referred to in Article (168) of these Regulations.

In all cases, the employees of the Authority authorized with the capacity of the judicial police shall have the right to enter any headquarters of the Taxable Person whenever this is necessary to carry out the examination work.

Article (170)

The Taxable Person is obligated to receive the Authority’s employees authorized with the status of the judicial seizure, and to enable them to view the records, books, and documents to be examined. He is also obligated to provide the data, records, notebooks and documents required by the employees of the Authority during their conduct of the tax inspection work, within (3) three days from the date of His request unless the Taxable Person provides sufficient evidence of the difficulties he faces in submitting these data, records, books and documents within the specified period, and the Chairman may grant the Taxable Person another appropriate period.

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Article (171)

The period of tax inspection shall be (3) three months starting from the date of the examination commencement, and the president may extend this period for another similar period upon a request from the competent employee conducting the examination, provided that the employee states in his request the reasons and justifications for the extension.

The examination must be limited to the Tax Periods specified in the notification referred to in Article (168) of these Regulations, unless the Chairman decides, based on reasons that he assesses, to conduct the examination for other Tax Periods.

Article (172)

The Authority shall notify the Taxable Person of the results of the tax examination, provided that the notification includes the following:

1- Estimating the tax, or amending the Tax Return, as the case may be.

2- The Tax Period for which the tax assessment was prepared, or its amendment.

3- The date of the tax assessment, or the date on which the Tax Return was amended.

4- The basis on which to estimate the tax or amend the Tax Return.

5- The value of the tax due, and the date for its payment.

6- Any other data determined by the Authority.

Article (173)

It is not permissible to re-examine a Tax Period or elements previously examined, to make a tax assessment for it, or to amend the Tax Return except in the event of new information affecting the computation of the imposed tax value, provided that the re-examination is limited to what is stated in this information.

Chapter 3

The Authority measures against misrepresentation and fraud

Article (174)

For the purposes of implementing the provisions of Article (80) of the law, in the event that it is proven that any person has followed methods of fraud or used fraudulent means, with the aim of avoiding being subject - wholly or partly - to the tax due for any Tax Period, the Authority shall have the right to take the following measures:  

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1- Registering the person or canceling his registration.

2- Neglecting any transaction for tax purposes.

3- Making an estimate of the tax or amending the Tax Return to the extent that the amount of the tax was avoided (in whole or in part).

4- Cancellation of any previously issued decision to refund the tax.

5- Claiming a refund of previously refunded tax within the period specified by the Authority.

6- Taking measures to impose penalties in accordance with Chapter Twelve of the Law.

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The Translator, Muhammad Altaf Hussain, is the Territory Managing Partner for Tax and Advisory practice of AJMS Global in Oman (www.ajmsglobal.com). He may be contacted at [email protected], 968 9414 9519 or 971 50 971 7890.

Disclaimer:

This LinkedIn article does not comprehensively cover the contents of the provisions laid out in the legal framework of the jurisdiction in question and is likely to present personal opinions of the Author, which may be prone to errors, in spite of Author's bona fide intentions to share knowledge through this Article, free of charge to general public, and for which the Author has not received any remuneration from any party. Please use your own discretion before relying on the contents herein above. The Author, or any party associated with him, do not accept any responsibility for any actions taken on the basis of this LinkedIn article.