Company A filed its tax return for the 2015/16 valuation year on the due date in September 2015.

It received an information notice from the Mauritius Revenue Authority (“MRA”) for the 2015/16 evaluation year in September 2017.

The company provided some of the information and MRA requested additional details as required. The process culminated in a meeting held in June 2019 with MRA officers, a company representative and a member of our team. At the meeting, both parties reached agreement in principle on adjustments to the company’s revenues and expenses for the year of assessment. The adjustments resulted in an additional tax, even if below what the MRA claimed.

However, the company’s directors received the MRA evaluation by email on July 2, 2019. As far as appraisals are concerned, the law stipulates that the MRA must notify the taxpayer in writing within 3 years of the valuation year in question. In this case, the assessment for the 2015/16 evaluation year should have been submitted by June 30, 2019.

The fact that the MRA email was dated July 2, 2019 (although the attached letter was dated June 28, 2019), we reasoned that the MRA had exceeded the time limit to publish the assessment as it would have been necessary to notify the taxpayer in writing by June 30, 2019. The MRA accepted our argument and the assessment was cancelled, allowing the company to save on the tax.

The MRA is extremely diligent in its application of the tax rules, both for taxpayers and for itself. Thus, it is wise to check the details of worldly appearance and we can help you.