IR: Revenue investigates millionaire fraud in deductions – 05/04/2023 – Market

The Federal Revenue is investigating 35,000 people for alleged fraud of BRL 350 million in the Income Tax returns sent between 2018 and 2022.

The Treasury says it has identified 35,230 taxpayers who would have informed false medical expenses on your income tax returns in order to reduce your tax payment or increase your refund. Another 472 health professionals are also under investigation for having provided receipts for these consultations and procedures considered false.

Taxpayers with suspicious expenses and health professionals will be summoned by the Revenue and will need to prove payment and provision of the service. The agency reported that, in an initial questioning, most taxpayers did not have the documentation (bank transfer, proof of debit, cash withdrawal at a close date) to prove the disbursement of the amount.

The Federal Revenue has five years to audit the statements and, therefore, the investigation involves documents sent between 2018 and 2022. Due to this audit deadline, the taxpayer needs to keep the documents that prove the expenses reported for five years.

The agency says that taxpayers involved in suspected fraud can regularize the situation before receiving the subpoena.

To correct errors, the taxpayer needs to access the old declaration in the Revenue’s e-CAC (Virtual Service Center) and send the corrections in a rectifying declaration. If there is a change in the amount of tax that was refunded in excess, it will be necessary to issue a Darf (Federal Revenue Collection Documentation) and pay the amount.

If the statements are not rectified and proof of payments or provision of these services does not occur, those involved may pay fines ranging from 75% to 150% of the amount of tax that was not paid and still be liable for crimes against the tax order. , ideological falsehood and criminal organization, depending on the case.

Data crossing helped investigation

The Federal Revenue says it has cross-referenced data declared by health professionals with other fiscal, patrimonial and financial information to arrive at the conclusion that payments may be fictitious.

In one of these cases, the tax authorities say they identified a physiotherapist from Mato Grosso who claimed to have received BRL 4.4 million from clients from seven different states in 2021. According to the Federal Revenue, the professional would need to have worked 24 hours a day in all 365 days a year and charged BRL 502 per hour, on average, to reach this figure.

The investigation involves cases in all states and in the Federal District, with Goiás, São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Mato Grosso, Minas Gerais and Ceará being the places with the most suspected cases of participation.

Medical expenses are deducted from the IR

The payment of consultations and medical procedures allows a total deduction in the Income Tax and there is no value limit. “Therefore, the Revenue pays more attention to these expenses”, says David Soares, IOB’s IR consultant.

In the fine mesh of the IR, inconsistencies in medical expenses are the second most frequent reason for withholding the declaration. Last year, 21.7% of cases of fine mesh were related to health expenses, second only to income omission, with 40.6% of cases.

In addition to consultations, the taxpayer can also deduct expenses with hospital admissions, health plans, orthopedic devices, prostheses, orthoses, therapies and other procedures. Click here to see what they are.

HOW DO I PROVE MY INCOME TAX EXPENDITURE?

Those who are going to deduct expenses provided for by law in the Income Tax can only inform their expenses or those of their dependents in the declaration. Proof of payment must be in hand. They must have the CPF of the professional or CNPJ of the establishment that received the payment, in addition to the beneficiary data of the expense and the date of issue. Some expenses also require a signed medical report.

If you do not have an invoice, you must have the signature of the service provider. In the absence of these documents, the veracity of the information can be verified with proof of payment, such as a check, bank statement or receipt from the card machine.

If the payment was issued without identifying the beneficiary, the Revenue assumes that the declarant was the one who received the treatment. If not, the taxpayer may resort to a statement from the professional or company that received the amount to specify the beneficiary.

If this procedure is not carried out and the expense was for someone other than the holder, the statement may end up in the fine mesh. “That’s why it’s necessary to collect data in advance and check carefully to avoid problems”, says tax lawyer Jonathas Lisse, from VRL Advogados.