GRA shutdown Hotels in Accra over tax issues

The Ghana Revenue Authority has shut down two hotels in Accra over its non-compliance with VAT/NHIL standards.

The hotels allegedly failed to issue the VAT/NHIL invoices for their transactions over a period.

The development also follows a report from Ghana’s Bureau of National Investigation (BNI) that, 3 out of every 42 businesses investigated did not issue VAT/NHIL invoices to customers or clients for goods and services - as stipulated by Section 33 of the Revenue Administration Act 2016 (Act 915).

Both hotels: Adeko and New Haven were among the three and there are speculations that even more are yet to be cracked down on, if they fail to rectify the problem ahead of the GRA’s action.

Commenting on the development, the GRA’s Head of Revenue Mobilization – Henry Bradford Sam said: “The Ghana Revenue Authority has clamped down on businesses that fail to issue the VAT invoice or issue their own invoice or do what we call selective issuance of VAT invoice”.

Adding that, “The Bureau of National Investigation (BNI) assisted the Ghana Revenue Authority and carried out due diligence through test purchase and examined that the number of tax payers who totaled forty two, only three issued the VAT invoice. Thirty nine of them were found to be issuing their own invoice or no invoice at all or what we call selective issuance of VAT invoice, this in contrary to the law”.

Both hotels' management will face various degrees of punishment including a jail term of up to six months.

The development comes at a time when country is facing major compliance issues - particularly with its financial institutions: one which resulted in the collapse of two of its ‘big banking brands’.