A*star research fellow fined S$7,000 for GST offences involving luxury goods
REUTERS file photo.
SINGAPORE – A research fellow from the Agency for Science, Technology and Research has been convicted of two counts of Goods and Services Tax (GST) refund fraud and was fined S$7,000 on Monday (Oct 9).
Chinese national Bai Jiaming, 31, was charged earlier on Friday for engaging the help of Zhang Yaoqun, who is a tourist, to claim a GST refund of S$1,543.93, said a press statement issued by the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (Iras) on Monday. The refund was for a Tiffany & Co diamond ring which Bai had bought for S$23,600.
Bai also admitted to obtaining a Prada handbag from Zhang Yaoqun after a GST refund of S$1,791.87 had been claimed for both the bag and the ring.
He did not qualify for GST refund under the Electronic Tourist Refund Scheme because he was not a tourist and was working in Singapore.
Bai had enlisted the help of Zhang Yaoqun through his colleague, Zhang Baicheng, who is Zhang Yaoqun’s son. At Zhang Baicheng’s suggestion, Bai asked the elder Zhang to obtain approval for a GST refund even though Zhang Yaoqun was not entitled to the said GST refund as he was not the purchaser of the ring.
On March 11, Bai had gone to the airport with a one way air ticket to Jakarta – which he had bought the day before – with the Zhangs with the intention of claiming the GST refunds. The two Zhangs were headed to Bangkok and had return air tickets.
The elder Zhang then made a GST refund claim for the handbag and the diamond ring at the transit area of Changi International Airport Terminal 3. After getting approval for the refund, which was to be credited to Zhang Baicheng’s bank account, Zhang Yaoqun passed the handbag and diamond ring to his son, who in turn handed it to Bai.
Bai then attempted to leave the transit area with the handbag and diamond ring. But he was stopped by an Immigrations and Checkpoint Authority of Singapore officer for the suspected misuse of a boarding pass.
If Bai defaults on payment of the S$7,000 fine, he will have to serve four weeks’ imprisonment.
The Zhangs were charged on July 28 for their offences and their cases are still pending.
“The Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore takes a serious view of anyone who makes false declarations to seek GST refunds under the tourist refund scheme and abuses the scheme,” said the statement.
“Iras works closely with the enforcement authorities to uncover any attempt to defraud GST.”
The tax enforcement agency also noted that under the GST Regulation, a person would have committed an offence for receiving goods from a tourist, directly or indirectly, knowing that the tourist has obtained approval for the refund.
The person will also be committing an offence for engaging another person to seek or obtain an approval for a refund under the tourist refund scheme, Iras added.
Offenders are liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding S$5,000 and in default of payment to an imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months.
Earlier this year, five foreigners were charged for conspiring to fraudulently claim GST refunds amounting to approximately S$167,253 for jewellery they did not personally purchase.
The group would use a “tourist” who would pay local consumers - who are not entitled to GST refunds - for their jewellery invoices.
Using their passports and their ill-gotten invoices, these “tourists” would then get electronic tourist refund scheme tickets from the respective shops and later claim the cash refunds when they depart the country.
