We pay all our taxes, but in rare cases, the tax authorities are willing to pay us a good sum of money. Well-informed people hide from shouting it from the rooftops.
In France, dishonest taxpayers are numerous and cause cold sweats in the tax administration, which loses hundreds of millions of euros each year. Faced with this considerable loss of money, the tax authorities decided to experiment, in 2017, with an unusual practice intended to remunerate those who are colloquially called “the scales” or “the tax informers”. Initially, it was only reserved for fraud concerning international taxation, then for VAT fraud, but it was quickly tested for all types of tax fraud, for big business. This system was to end on December 31, 2023, but it was rather successful, so much so that an amendment plans to expand and perpetuate it, as part of the 2024 finance bill.
Fraud is illegal, and reporting is rather frowned upon, but informing the tax authorities about fraudsters that you know closely or distantly can pay off big. Because the amount that a tax advisor receives is proportional to the amount of the sum collected by the tax authorities, which can go up to 15%. And as the files handled only concern cases of great importance, beyond 100,000 euros of damage, this means that for each case, the tax advisor can receive around 15,000 euros or more.
But then, who are these tax advisors, of whom there are more than 300 in France, who denounce fraudsters? In general, it is the spouse, ex-spouses who divorce and who seek revenge by revealing practices that until then remained secret. But it can also involve denouncing friends or acquaintances who boast of fraud without ever having been caught red-handed or the accountant witnessing his client’s embezzlement.
The files must be validated then carefully studied by the tax services, who most of the time recover accounts hidden illegally abroad. The administration also maintains the anonymity of its informants, and they do everything to remain discreet.