TEHRAN - Iranian National Tax Administration (INTA) managed to collect 1.38 quadrillion rials (about $32.85 billion) of tax revenues during the first six months of the current Iranian calendar year (March 21-August 22), to register a 62 percent rise compared to the previous year’s same period, an official with the mentioned administration told ISNA.

According to Mohammad Masihi, Iran’s national budget bill for the current Iranian calendar year has predicted a tax income of 2.7 quadrillion rials (about $64.2 billion), which indicates that the country’s tax income plan for the first half of the year has been realized by over 101 percent.

Masihi underlined focusing on important tax cases, monitoring suspicious banking transactions and dealing with shell companies under the framework of the tax evasion program, facilitating tax processes and improvement in the attitude of taxpayers as major factors contributing to the realization of tax revenues.

The government had also managed to collect 590 trillion rials (about $14 billion) of tax revenues during the first three months of the current Iranian calendar year (March 21-June 21), registering a 70 percent rise compared to the previous year’s same period.

Over 1.92 quadrillion rials (about $45.7 billion) of tax revenues were also collected during the past Iranian calendar year of 1399 (ended on March 20), showing that the country’s annual tax income plan came true by 107 percent.

According to the former Finance and Economic Affairs Minister Farhad Dejpasand, tax revenues accounted for 84 percent of the total funding made in various sectors in the previous year.

Over 100 trillion rials (about $2.38 billion) of deferred taxes were also collected in the previous Iranian calendar year, the official said.

One of the most important achievements of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs in recent years has been the smartening of the tax system, the most important outcome of which has been the complete realization of the tax income plan.

The realization of tax income plans in recent years has taken place in the condition that the country is facing severe economic sanctions.

EF/MA