According to the Iranian regime’s tax authorities, 135,509 luxury residential units and garden villas were taxed worth 44.63 trillion rials (approximately $69.8 million), of which only 940 billion rials (approximately $69.8 million) were collected. 1,471 million dollars).
According to the group, the 2024 luxury housing tax threshold under the budget law is set at 350 billion rials (about $547,730). All residential units and garden villas exceeding this amount must pay tax on the excess amount.
Amid reports that tax evasion by the wealthy has become commonplace, owners of luxury homes are falling behind in paying their taxes. According to the tax authority, the government’s income tax and payroll tax revenues increased by 15% in spring 2024, goods and services tax revenues increased by 36.5%, but wealth tax revenues decreased by 28.5%.
The government’s track record shows that in recent years, due to a decline in foreign exchange earnings, the government has focused on tax collection to cover some of its ongoing expenditures.
On September 24, the head of Iran’s tax authority said that the organization’s revenue collections in the first half of this year increased by 49% compared to the same period last year: “We collected a total of 511,389 billion rials (about $8).” said. This is an increase of approximately 1.67 quintillion riyals (approximately $2.6 billion) from the same period last year. ”
In May 2024, *Mehr News Agency* reported that government tax revenues increased from 1.09 quintillion riyals (approximately $1.7 billion) in 2018 to approximately 8.06 quintillion riyals (approximately $12.6 billion), an increase of 740% in six years. reported.
Although tax revenues are increasing, many experts believe that the government is not providing services commensurate with the amount of taxes it collects. Additionally, there is no transparency or reporting on how tax revenue is used.
This comes as a significant portion of Iran’s economy, estimated by experts to account for more than 50% of the country’s total economy, is under the control of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and exempt from taxes. . In fact, the largest share of tax evasion is related to the assets of regime leaders.
