"Make the ultra-rich and defrauding multinationals pay what they owe." This is the priority of Gabriel Attal for the tax fraud plan demanded by President Emmanuel Macron, and that his minister will present this Tuesday.
"We tax more than our neighbours, and we are not a tax haven for anyone. Obviously, we hear the demand for justice" present in the processions against the pension reform, promised the minister delegate for public accounts before giving the main lines of his plan, in an interview with Le Monde.
Gabriel Attal presents his plan to fight tax fraud: "Every fraud is serious, but that of the most powerful is unforgivable"https://t.co/0eAO53eU3M
— Le Monde (@lemondefr) May 8, 2023
Gabriel Attal set the tone by indicating a change of course for the fight against tax fraud. "Every fraud is serious, but that of the most powerful is unforgivable. My philosophy is to focus efforts on them and relieve pressure on the middle classes," says the Vanves city councillor. With this objective, the government intends to increase tax audits "on the largest assets" by 25% by the end of the five-year term.
"The big tax evader will go and repaint the tax office"
For the same purpose, "the hundred largest market capitalizations" will be subject to a tax audit every two years. Gabriel Attal also wants to "strengthen sanctions for the most serious frauds". The Minister Responsible for Public Accounts targets in particular the "concealment of assets abroad". "In these situations, we are no longer in citizenship," he laments.
The former government spokesman also unveiled three other major measures, with the creation of a "tax intelligence service in Bercy" that will have permission to "recruit human sources working for financial institutions and pay them for their information". Dedicated to the fight against major international fraud, it will be equipped with a hundred "elite agents", who will use intelligence techniques such as "eavesdropping, data capture, setting beacons".
Read alsoGabriel Attal: "In 2022, the recovery of tax fraud broke a record with 14.6 billion euros"
In total, "1,500 additional personnel" will be dedicated to the fight against tax fraud by 2027. Gabriel Attal also wants to set up "an offense of incitement to tax fraud". Punishable by three years' imprisonment and a financial penalty, this offence aims to prosecute and punish intermediaries who provide "turnkey legal kits to defraud".
Finally, the last more symbolic proposal of this tax fraud plan, convictions for tax fraud without penalty of deprivation of liberty are now accompanied by community service. "In addition to paying his fine, the big tax evader will repaint the tax office," said the minister. It should be noted that the plan is not yet costed. More details are expected to be given during his presentation on Tuesday.
