Morocco tax authorities audit 80 e-commerce businesses over revenue discrepancies

Morocco’s tax authorities have begun auditing the accounts of about 80 companies and traders operating in e-commerce following data indicating possible discrepancies in the reporting of revenues from cash-on-delivery sales and recurring bank transfers made by delivery companies to online businesses, according to Hespress AR sources familiar with the matter.

Regional and provincial tax inspectors are reviewing financial flows estimated at around 120 million dirhams ($12 million), most of which relates to payments collected by delivery companies from customers for orders before being transferred to the professional bank accounts of the businesses involved, the sources said.

The first phase of the audits has focused on the Rabat-Casablanca corridor, where inspectors are comparing transfers received from delivery companies with declared turnover, invoices and accounting records.

The comparisons have identified preliminary discrepancies whose nature, source and potential impact on the businesses’ tax declarations are still being examined, the sources said.

Inspectors have also raised questions in some cases about how cash-on-delivery revenues were recorded in accounting systems, particularly when amounts collected by delivery companies were entered as cash transactions or recorded in cash accounts despite subsequently being transferred to merchants’ bank accounts.

Authorities are therefore tracing the flow of funds from the delivery and collection of an order through to the transfer of the merchant’s proceeds. They are comparing the dates and amounts of transfers with sales documents, accounting entries and related tax declarations.

Cash accounts are also being reviewed by matching their balances and transactions against actual cash flows and bank records to determine whether the accounting entries accurately reflect the movement of funds.

Taxpayers included in the audits have been asked to provide documents and explanations regarding the source of financial transfers, how they were recorded in their accounts and how they correspond to completed orders, the sources said.

The aim is to distinguish discrepancies arising from the collection cycle and settlements with delivery companies from amounts that cannot be clearly supported by the documentation and tax declarations submitted by the businesses.

The cross-checking of aggregated financial data with accounting records and tax declarations has provided inspectors with additional indicators to reconstruct sales cycles, particularly for businesses that rely heavily on cash-on-delivery payments, according to the sources.

Tax authorities are awaiting the results of the initial audits of the 80 files before determining the nature and scale of the discrepancies identified. The review is expected to expand to additional businesses after the data-matching process revealed recurring inconsistencies between sales, bank transfers and tax declarations, the sources said.

Morocco’s General Tax Code provides a legal framework for tax audits and the verification of taxpayers’ declarations and accounting documents. Article 212 governs the accounting examination procedure, while Article 213 addresses serious accounting irregularities that can affect the evidentiary value of accounting records and their consequences for determining the taxable base.

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