Sng Kay Heng (“Sng”), 46, the sole proprietor of general wholesale trade firm, Strikey Trading, was found guilty and convicted of making false entries in the GST returns of his business entity which resulted in GST refunds totalling $30,806.61.

Court Sentences

Sng had claimed trial to three GST charges of making false entries with wilful intent to evade tax in his GST returns. For the three GST evasion offences committed, the Court sentenced Sng to 6 weeks’ imprisonment and ordered him to pay a penalty of $92,419.83, three times the amount of tax undercharged.

Fictitious Entries in GST Returns

Sng was the accomplice of Eric Chia Puay Yeoh, who was convicted in July 2014 for masterminding a complex GST scam by using multiple shell entities and colluding with Sng to defraud the Comptroller of GST of GST refunds. 

Sng had voluntarily registered himself for GST in Oct 2005. 

IRAS’ investigations revealed that Sng, who elected to file his GST returns on a monthly basis, made false entries in his GST returns for the accounting periods ending November 2005, December 2005 and January 2006. Investigations further revealed that the suppliers whom Strikey Trading had purportedly made purchases from confirmed that they did not make any sales to Strikey Trading. 

GST Law

GST-registered businesses are allowed to offset the GST they pay for their purchases (input tax) against the GST they collect from sales (output tax). The net difference is due to IRAS. Those that incur more GST on purchases than they collect from their sales can claim the difference from IRAS in the form of GST refunds. 

Severe Penalties for Fraudulent GST Claims

It is a serious offence to claim GST input tax on fictitious purchases or understate output tax on sales. Offenders face a penalty of up to 3 times the amount of tax undercharged, a fine not exceeding $10,000, and/or imprisonment of up to 7 years.

Disclosure or Reporting of Malpractices

Businesses or individuals are encouraged to immediately disclose any past tax mistakes. IRAS will treat such disclosures as mitigating factors when considering action to be taken. Those who wish to disclose past mistakes, reveal evaded taxes, or report malpractices that might indicate tax evasion, can write to:

Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore
Investigation & Forensics Division
55 Newton Road, Revenue House
Singapore 307987

Email: [email protected]

Cash Reward for Informants

A reward based on 15% of the tax recovered, capped at $100,000, will be given to informants if the information and/or documents provided lead to the recovery of tax that would have otherwise been lost. All payments are at the discretion of the Comptroller. IRAS will ensure that the identities of informants are kept strictly confidential.

Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore