Tax evaders paid up debts after being publicly named. — Photo cafef.vn

HA NOI (Biz Hub) — Of the 268 businesses that owed the Ha Noi Government back taxes, 136 have paid up more than VND700 billion (US$32.1 million) after being publicly named last week, according to the city tax department.

Most of the money related to land-use tax payable for housing projects.

A department official said outing the names of evaders is an effective measure to get businesses to pay taxes.

However, after the department released a list of 600 dodgers, some were found to be wrong, and it had to apologise. Eight businesses did not belong while 27 others owed less than proclaimed.

The department blamed the errors on a new software.

A Ministry of Finance report said as of the end of last year total unpaid taxes amounted to VND72 trillion (US$3.3 billion), double the maximum limit set by the National Assembly.

According to a ministry dispatch, the 600 companies named had either owed the largest amounts of unpaid taxes in a locality or failed to pay within the stipulated 121-day period despite being notified.

More measures like freezing assets and declaring their receipt books invalid are being contemplated, the dispatch said.

The ministry called on the heads of provincial and city tax departments to use coercive measures to reclaim the unpaid taxes in accordance with the Law on Tax Management

It plans to publish the names of tax dodgers every month. — VNS