Rwanda National Police

The Rwanda National Police’s (RNP) Revenue Protection Unit (RPU) managed to recover about Rwf266 million taxes that otherwise would have been evaded between May and August this year.

 The achievement is a result of  strong partnership between RPU, the public 

and Rwanda Revenue Authority (RRA) through which they collectively conduct operations to fight tax evasion and fraud.

 According to RPU report, the unit recovered over Rwf104 million in May, in June it collected Rwf49 million while Rwf59 million and Rwf52 million were recovered in the months of July and August respectively.

 The recovered revenues include the public money that otherwise would have been evaded through fraud and smuggling, and fines levied on the offenders. 

In an interview, the Commanding Officer of RPU, Chief Supt. Jean Nepo Mbonyumuvunyi said that following acute non-tax compliance by the members of business community in the previous decades, the government found it imperative to include police as a backup force for tax enforcement.

 “Since the establishment of RPU, the situation has dramatically changed whereby, many successful operations have been conducted against smugglers, while through our sensitization campaigns, many traders now understand better their role in national development through tax compliance,” he added.

 Some recent cases involved fraudulent traders in Kigali, who were busted and arrested while attempting to manipulate Electronic Billing Machines and cheat the government of taxes more than Rwf384 million.

 Another man was arrested early this month at Gatuna border as he attempted to flee following Police investigations into his alleged issuance of fake invoices worth Rwf3 billion.

 Another case occurred in September when police in Nyabihu seized a vehicle packed with over 200 bottles of smuggled premium liquor brands such as Amarula, Jack Daniels, Glenfiddich Whisky Moet and Chandon to mention but a few.

 If the taxpayer is found guilty of tax evasion, such as false deliberate accounting entries, forgery and falsification of records or any other act punishable by law, he/she is liable to a term of imprisonment of six months to two years and a fine equal to the evaded tax.

 “Through professional investigations, we locate tax evaders and they pay evaded taxes and fines as stipulated by the law. On top of that, a number of cases related to tax evasion acts are submitted to prosecution each month. This has worked to deter anyone with intentions to engage in this illegal activity,” CSP Mbonyumuvunyi explained.

 “We are aware that some business people are always looking for loopholes to smuggle goods – and that is why we conduct random operation following credible information either from whistleblowers or the public through community policing. Through such operations, we have found shops and supermarkets selling goods without tax stamps. In order to recover the taxes, we seize these products and inform RRA, which imposes fines on the wrongdoers.”

 Article 369 of the Penal Code states that a taxpayer guilty of tax evasion shall be liable to a term of imprisonment of between three to six months and a fine equal to the evaded tax