Finance Minister Purbaya will not implement tax amnesty without presidential order

Jakarta (ANTARA) - Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa has affirmed that he will not implement tax amnesty or tax forgiveness policies while in office, unless there is a direct order from the President. “Yesterday I was asked if there would be tax amnesty again. I said, unless there is an order from the President, I will not implement tax amnesty while I am Minister,” Purbaya stated during the inauguration of eight new officials at the Directorate General of Taxes (DJP) at the Ministry of Finance office in Jakarta on Tuesday. He explained that the implementation of tax amnesty is not black-and-white but involves many grey areas that can create complexity. According to him, this could lead to uncertainty that potentially results in legal risks during its execution. At the inauguration event, Purbaya also advised the new DJP officials to carry out their tax duties with a focus on integrity. He stressed that if integrity is compromised, the entire system will gradually be affected. Even if targets are met, public trust could be lost and difficult to restore. “But I will ensure that we implement tax practices that eliminate risks to tax officials from legal demands that are sometimes not black-and-white. If you are unsure about carrying out your duties due to unclear regulations, report it to me. We will review the regulations, and if necessary, we will amend them,” Purbaya said. His statement was intended to clarify information regarding audits of PPS participants previously mentioned by Director General of Taxes Bimo Wijayanto. “Basically, those who have undergone tax amnesty will not have their registered assets dug into again. Going forward, they just need to pay according to their business as usual, normal business developments,” he said. Purbaya urged tax amnesty participants not to overinterpret media reports and to continue fulfilling their tax obligations as they have been doing.