Tories chase tax cheats

The Conservatives are beefing up the tools used to go after tax cheats.

They’re creating a dedicated team to pinpoint tax evaders and pouring $30 million over the next five years into the cause.

Read: How CRA finds unreported income

“Those who don’t pay their taxes by hiding money overseas place an unfair burden on law-abiding, hardworking Canadians,” says Minister of National Revenue Gail Shea. “Our Government has long recognized that international tax evasion is a serious issue, and we are dedicated to cracking down on those who attempt to cheat the system.”

Half of this is money announced in the March budget, the other half is being reallocated from elsewhere within the Canada Revenue Agency.

The budget money will be used to build a system allowing CRA to get reports from financial institutions on international transfers over $10,000.

The CRA funds will be used to bring in new audit and compliance resources dedicated exclusively to international compliance issues and revenue collection.

Read: CRA cracks down on tax evasion

Shea says people who hide money overseas and get out of paying taxes put an unfair burden on taxpayers.

It’s unclear how much money is actually lost each year to tax evasion; independent estimates indicate Canada could be losing up to $7.8 billion annually in tax revenue.

The Minister of National Revenue has also directed the CRA to continue to pursue all means available to obtain information that the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists and its members hold on individuals with income or property held offshore, reportedly including 450 Canadians.

Written requests from the CRA have already been sent to the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists as well as to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, underscoring the public interest in confidential disclosure of the information to the CRA.

Also read:

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