Optimistic Observer Of The 2023 Tax Revenue Target Worth IDR 1,718 Trillion Can Be Achieved

Tax Observer Danny Darussalam Tax Center (DDTC) Bawono Kristiaji is optimistic that the 2023 tax target of IDR 1,718 trillion will be achieved, given the historical trend of growth in the realization of annual tax revenues so far in the range of 7-8 percent.

"In general, optimism is achieved. So three consecutive years, hopefully, the realization will reach 100 percent," said the man who is familiarly called Aji in an official statement in Jakarta, quoted from Antara, Wednesday, July 12.

Even so, Aji is still wary of the global economic slowdown, especially the weakening of commodity prices, which will have a significant impact on the performance of the corporate income tax (PPh) throughout 2023.

Tax revenue trends from year to year show an increasing performance. In 2021, tax revenues grew significantly by 20.4 percent or returned to pre-pandemic levels.

The positive trend continues in 2022 with growth reaching 31.4 percent. Tax revenues until May 2023 were recorded to still grow positively to double digits reaching Rp830.29 trillion, mainly driven by economic growth in the first quarter of 2023.

For this reason, he also appreciated the government's steps to start reducing the dependence of revenue sources from the natural resource commodity sector (SDA) that are prone to fluctuation, both through downstreaming of natural resources and optimizing other sectors.

On the other hand, Aji said that the strategy pursued by the government, both through administrative reforms and tax policies based on the Law on Harmonization of Tax Regulations (UU HPP), is very important in encouraging an increase in revenue this year, because it is proven that the implementation of the HPP Law can increase the realization of state revenues in the tax sector.

Meanwhile, in terms of policy, he hopes that the technical provisions derived by the HPP Law or the Minister of Finance Regulation from several instruments that do not yet have technical provisions can be issued immediately.

Some of the policies that are awaiting technical provisions include anti-tax avoidance, as well as plans to appoint marketplace platform providers in e-commerce as cutting or tax collectors.

"Well, of course, we are waiting for these things so that if this provision is issued, it must be both in terms of administration and in terms of policies that can go hand in hand, so that our tax revenue will be stronger in the future, especially in the midst of weakening commodity prices," he said.