DOCTORS make up the biggest number of tax dodgers among professionals, with 3,000 owing more than RM1 billion to the government, the Inland Revenue Board (IRB) said.

IRB pointed out that up to August this year, the total amount of tax and penalties owed by doctors was RM1.106 billion, Sinar Harian reported.

Doctors made up 3,000 of the number of tax dodgers. Other professionals targeted and audited by the IRB were engineers (1,287), lawyers (182), and architects (141).

IRB chief executive officer Sabin Samitah was quoted as saying that engineers, the second largest group of tax dodgers, owed tax and penalties amounting to RM38.301 million, while lawyers and architects owed RM7.39 million and RM1.181 million respectively.

Of the 4,610 professionals under scrutiny of the IRB in its routine check, Sabin said not all were tax dodgers.

IRB also audited 70 large companies and 15 were found to have evaded tax or conducted aggressive tax planning, owing taxes and penalties amounting to RM1.016 billion. – September 20, 2017.