Ammon News - Income and Sales Tax Department Director General Hussam Abu Ali on Monday joined media representatives in a dialogue session titled “Tax in Jordan Between Collection and Development”.

“Income tax law includes each income that is monitored and controlled from all of its sources, as long as it is not exempted by the law,” said Abu Ali. This includes commercial and entrepreneurial activities practiced by social media influencers, he added.

The session was hosted by the Centre for Defending the Freedom of Journalists (CDFJ) at the Zain headquarters in Amman.

Abu Ali said that 95 per cent of the tax department’s services are provided electronically, noting that Jordan’s tax revenues were higher in 2020, when compared with 2019, due to support from the state budget.

The media forum seeks to periodically engage decision makers in dialogues, debates and discussions with journalists and media representatives, to ensure the open exchange of accurate information.

Regarding tax evasion, Abu Ali said: “Tax fraud is a crime, and it is outside the jurisdiction of the tax auditor and tax service director. It is within judicial power.”

He pointed out that tax scrutiny is carried out through a specialised team that follows clear and specific criteria.

During 2019 and 2020, the department built a database of information, which enabled it to change and develop its approach in combating tax fraud, he said.

“The bulk of the income tax [the equivalent of over JD1 billion] is collected from companies, and what is collected from employees does not exceed JD160 million,” Abu Ali stated.