PUTRAJAYA: The saying “nothing is certain but death and taxes” could not be more true for 63 cooking oil repacking companies after their action to under-declare income estimated at RM1bil was discovered.

       Their activities were detected by tax officers who were investigating these companies suspected to have under-declared their income for assessment years from 2018 to 2020.

       Inland Revenue Board (LHDN) chief executive officer Datuk Mohd Nizom Sairi said the tax evasion was detected following a special operation carried out on companies which were suspected to have abused cooking oil subsidies.

       “As a result of this operation, we have estimated that RM200mil in taxes could have been collected from these companies that under-declared their income,” he said at a press conference yesterday.

       During the operation codenamed Ops Saji, 44 had under-declared their taxes, while 19 did not even have tax files.

       Mohd Nizom said this was the first time that LHDN had carried out a targeted operation on companies receiving government subsidies for cooking oil, adding that an investigation was carried out following public complaints over lack of packet cooking oil supplies.

       “From the amount of subsidies allocated by the government, the packet cooking oil should be of a certain amount but there was a shortage,” he added.

       The government has allocated about RM400mil to RM600mil in subsidies for cooking oil annually.

       The LHDN discovered that the modus operandi of the culprits included hiring third parties to manage the transfer of cooking oil to be sold out of the country.