Bulgarian Tax Authority Positions Itself At Borders

by Ulrika Lomas, Tax-News.com, Brussels

26 August 2009

Bulgaria’s National Revenue Agency, in collaboration with the national Customs Agency, has initiated 24-hour oversight at nine border checkpoints in an effort to crack down on tax evasion and tax fraud arising from the movement of goods between Bulgaria and European Union member states.

Since 2007 goods have been allowed to move freely between Bulgaria and other member states without customs control, this, the government believes, is allowing taxes to be avoided, and tax fraud to be committed.

According to a statement from the National Revenue Agency, the authorities will now monitor in particular the import of goods such as fuel and grain.

It is estimated that Bulgaria loses BGN2-3bn (USD1.4-2bn) each year to smuggling and tax fraud, with fruit and vegetable importers from neighbouring countries thought to be the main culprits. Prior to the National Revenue Agency’s newly-announced initiative, the number of border officials had been recently doubled along the borders with Greece and Macedonia in a bid to restrict unrecorded goods, with particular attention being paid to the south-western checkpoint of Kulata on the Bulgarian-Greek border, where most of the produce brought in to Bulgaria is imported.

The move is one of a number aimed at increasing the country’s tax take in the face of falling revenues – 17% in the first half of 2010 – which have left a budget gap of BGN2.5bn. Last year, the EU froze aid, including agricultural, to the country because of concerns over the level of fraud there.

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