Magdy Abdel Aziz, head of the customs authority, said approximately 3,500 reports of tax evasion were filed over the past nine months.
On the sidelines of his visit to Brussels, where he headed Egypt’s delegation in meetings with the World Customs Organization’s (WCO) general policies secretariat, Abdel Aziz told Al-Masry Al-Youm that “several methods of evading customs that were never witnessed before by the authority were found out, perpetrated either by passengers or in harbors.”
"There will be an electronic network set up for most government authorities in Egypt, including the tax authority,” Abdel Aziz said.
He added that the WCO committee ratified the 2015-2016 regional training plan, including 15 programs that take into consideration the customs’ role in applying the World Trade Organization’s Agreement on Trade Facilitation
Meanwhile, the Interior Ministry’s customs and fees investigation department discovered 16 cases of tax evasion.
A statement by the ministry said, “People evaded paying a total of LE36 million to the state treasury, in addition to a case of smuggling foreign goods with no documents showing customs were paid.”
“Seven vehicles were seized for violating the law on customs exemptions. Regarding evading real estate taxes, 30 cases were found nationwide,” it added.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
