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Govt may require tax compliance for passport, driver’s license: Luhut
The DEN says the upcoming implementation of the GovTech integrated platform, which is expected to go online in August, could link tax compliance with an individual's eligibility for certain public services, such as passport issuance and business licensing.
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National Economic Council chariman Luhut Pandjaitan speaks to reporters on Nov. 27 after casting his ballot in the 2024 regional head elections at a polling station in Kuningan, Jakarta. (Courtesy of Kompas.com/Rully Ramli)
T
he government is considering barring noncompliant taxpayers from certain public services such as obtaining a passport or a driver’s license, the National Economic Council (DEN) has said, in view of the mid-August implementation of an integrated government services platform dubbed GovTech, as ordered by President Prabowo Subianto.
DEN chair Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan told a press conference on Thursday that GovTech would allow the state to oversee tax compliance of every individual and company.
“In the future it is possible that if you have tax arrears, you will likely not be allowed to travel abroad,” Luhut added, describing a potential interinstitutional enforcement capability of GovTech.
The government might also block individuals from getting or renewing their passports or driver’s license if they had not paid their taxes. The platform could also have the capacity to analyze an individual’s travel records in relation to their tax records.
“When you travel to Bali often, that means you have money. There’s no way you don’t have money if you travel there a lot; more so if you travel abroad. So this technology can read that deep. That’s what will help us enforce [tax] compliance,” he said.
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In addition, the government could hold an importer’s goods at a port and release them only after the system showed that the company had paid the relevant taxes and duties, Luhut said.
