Logo of Phnom Penh Post newspaper Phnom Penh Post - Tax revenue nearly 50% of 2022 target: PM

Tax revenue nearly 50% of 2022 target: PM

Content image - Phnom Penh Post
Prime Minister Hun Sen speaking at a Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports meeting on April 27 reflecting on 2021 results and setting the 2022 agenda. SPM

Tax revenue nearly 50% of 2022 target: PM

Cambodia's tax revenue in the first four months of 2022 is expected to reach nearly 50 per cent of the goal set by this year’s Law on Financial Management, with first quarter revenue collected reaching just over 44 per cent, according to Prime Minister Hun Sen.

The Law on Financial Management for 2022, requires the Ministry of Economy and Finance’s General Department of Taxation (GDT) to collect $2.820 billion in revenue this year.

Speaking at a Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports meeting on April 27 reflecting on 2021 results and setting the 2022 agenda, Hun Sen said that effective control of the Covid-19 outbreak and a high rate of vaccination against the disease have strengthened Cambodia’s herd immunity, which has led to the Kingdom maintaining socio-economic stability and relaunching production lines promptly and efficiently.

He said he was “very pleased” with what Cambodia had achieved during the difficult period that was the Covid-19 crisis, especially the feat of a continuous increase in tax collected.

“We are proud that in the first three months of this year, the tax revenue has already reached 44 per cent of the plan … in just four months, the tax sector will have achieved up to 50 per cent of the Law on Financial Management for 2022. We will be able to achieve good results” for the rest of the year, he said.

“At the same time, export growth in the first three months of the year increased by 33 per cent, which is no small achievement. It has been made possible due to our good management of socio-economic activities and control of Covid-19, which has led to an immediate [positive] impact on production.”

Data from the GDT shows that the department collected $1.263 billion in the first three months of 2022, equivalent to 44.8 per cent of the goal set by the Law on Financial Management for 2022.

Exports for that period totalled $5.717 billion, according to data from the General Department of Customs and Excise.

Hong Vanak, director of International Economics at the Royal Academy of Cambodia, said that the increase in tax revenue indicates that the Cambodian economy has begun to recover after stagnating due to the Covid-19 crisis.

He speculated that the increase in tax revenue may be due to a combination of factors including the rapid reopening of the country and the rebounding of the Cambodian economy, along with increased population income, clearer tax collection procedures and ease of paying taxes through digital means.

“Increasing tax revenue will boost the ability of the government to use the resources collected to develop the country and for other public investments,” he said.

However, he said the collection of tax revenue in Cambodia could still be further improved through updates in tax law – especially in the real estate and construction sectors, which he noted are constantly evolving and changing.

In 2021, the GDT collected $2.782 billion in taxes, or 124.02 per cent of the goal set by the Law on Financial Management.

MOST VIEWED

  • Joy as Koh Ker Temple registered by UNESCO

    Cambodia's Koh Ker Temple archaeological site has been officially added to UNESCO’s World Heritage List, during the 45th session of the World Heritage Committee held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on September 17. The ancient temple, also known as Lingapura or Chok Gargyar, is located in

  • Famed US collector family return artefacts to Cambodia

    In the latest repatriation of ancient artefacts from the US, a total of 33 pieces of Khmer cultural heritage will soon return home, according to the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts. In a September 12 press statement, it said the US Attorney’s Office for the

  • Tina rebuffs ‘false claims’ over falling paddy price

    Agriculture minister Dith Tina has shed light on the trade of paddy rice in Battambang – Cambodia’s leading rice-producing province – in a bid to curb what he dubs a “social media fact distortion campaign” to destabilise the market. While acknowledging that the prices of paddy

  • Cambodia set to celebrate Koh Ker UNESCO listing

    To celebrate the inscription of the Koh Ker archaeological site on UNESCO’s World Heritage List, the Ministry of Cults and Religion has appealed to pagodas and places of worship to celebrate the achievement by ringing bells, shaking rattles and banging gongs on September 20. Venerable

  • Kampot curfew imposed to curb ‘gang’ violence

    Kampot provincial police have announced measures to contain a recent spike in antisocial behaviour by “unruly’ youth. Officials say the province has been plagued by recent violence among so-called “gang members”, who often fight with weapons such as knives and machetes. Several social observers have

  • PM outlines plans to discuss trade, policy during US visit

    Prime Minister Hun Manet is set to meet with senior US officials and business leaders during his upcoming visit to the US for the UN General Assembly (UNGA), scheduled for September 20. While addressing nearly 20,000 workers in Kampong Speu province, Manet said he aims to affirm