THE INFLUENCE OF TAX CONSULTANT DEVELOPMENT ON TOURISM BUSINESS

THE INFLUENCE OF TAX CONSULTANT DEVELOPMENT ON TOURISM BUSINESS IN BALI

The role of the development of Tax Consultants in Bali with the tourism situation during the Covid-19 pandemic can be seen in conveying the stimulus or relaxation provided by the government to entrepreneurs in the tourism sector who are severely affected. The Covid-19 pandemic has severely impacted the tourism industry, causing significant economic shocks. OECD (The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development) estimates that global tourism will be declined by 60%-80% in 2020, influenced by factors such as the duration of the crisis and the speed of recovery. At the same time, the Central Statistics Agency (named BPS or Badan Pusat Statistik) recorded that the number of foreign tourists visit to Indonesia in May 2020 fell 86.90% starting from May 2019. This decline highlights the importance of supporting and investing in the recovery of the tourism industry. Tourism is a sector that absorbs labor and generates foreign exchange. The World Travel & Tourism Council said tourism absorbs up to 10% of the world’s workforce. Tourism’s foreign exchange contribution rose from US$ 12.2 billion in 2015 to US$ 15 billion in 2017. In April 2020 the tourism sector on the island of Bali fell by 93%. BPS Bali stated that the impact of Covid-19 on the Balinese economy in the second quarter of 2020 was very large, minus 10.98%, much lower than the previous quarter which grew minus 1.14%.

The government has provided various stimuli to make the Indonesian economy rise from the crisis. The stimulus includes government-borne (named P-DTP or Pajak Ditanggung Pemerintah) Income Tax Article 21, final income tax for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), and a 50% reduction in Income Tax Article 25 installments. All of these incentives are in PMK Number 86/PMK.03/2020 and PMK Number 110/PMK.03/2020. Income Tax Article 21 P-DTP can generally accommodate all businesses in the tourism sector, both those directly related and those not directly related. The final income tax for MSMEs P-DTP can also be utilized by tourism sector entrepreneurs who are taxed in accordance with Government Regulation Number 23 Year 2018. The reduction of Income Tax Article 25 installments was initially only given 30%, but since the issuance of PMK 110/2020 the reduction has increased into 50%.

The unpredictable duration of the pandemic will add to the government’s task of continuing to formulate economic policies that have a positive impact on the tourism sector. OECD said that broader and stronger measures are needed to offset the impact and risks of the pandemic. This is where the role of tax consultants is needed to anticipate tax revenues that will be made by the government if at any time the pandemic ends or has subsided. Thus, tax consultants become a very important function in handling this matter. Tax Consultant is a person / entity that provides tax consulting services to taxpayers in order to enforce their rights and fulfill their tax obligations in accordance with tax laws and regulations. The tax consultants assist with their client’s tax compliance, including calculating, paying, also reporting their obligation. Tax consultants offer consulting services on tax issues, but can also carry out tax planning to optimize the fulfillment of their clients’ tax obligations. In Indonesia, there are many companies that use tax consultant services in order to understand taxation in accordance with the business run by the company. The following services are usually provided by tax consultants to their service users:

1. Tax compliance. Tax consultants take care of matters related to their clients’ tax compliance such as calculating, paying and reporting taxes.
2. Tax planning. Tax consultants perform tax planning services aimed at optimizing the fulfillment of clients’ tax rights and obligations.
3. Tax Report Audit. This is a service to evaluate data related to the emergence of income and expenses related and/or not to the operations of the client company where to determine fiscal corrections.
4. Assistance in Audit. Tax consultants have the responsibility of representing or accompanying clients during tax audits if requested to do so by their clients. This is because many clients struggle to understand their taxation issues. Tax consultants also help prepare data/document collection needed during the audit.
5. Tax consultants offer consulting services on tax issues.
6. Tax restitution. If the client requires a refund of tax over-payment (restitution), the tax consultant can assist in its implementation starting from data preparation, submission of restitution, examination to the final process of receiving the refund of excess tax.
7. Tax dispute resolution. Tax consultants can provide tax dispute resolution services. For example, if the client plans to file a tax objection, appeal, etc.

In this case it can be said that the role of tax consultants is very important in taking care of the tax problems of entrepreneurs or companies engaged in tourism with the various services they provide. One of the Tax consultants in Bali who is being used by the company where we work is IBU Consulting Tax Consultant in Bali. IBU Consulting comes from the name of its founder, Ida Bagus Utama, S.E., S.H., M.H., BKP, CPCLE. It is established on December 22, 2017 with the aim of helping people who have difficulties in handling taxes both personal and corporate taxes. IBU Consulting is committed to providing good tax regulation implementation strategies and professional services for its clients to fulfill tax rights and obligations. The founder of IBU Consulting has expertise as a Tax Consultant (graduated from the Faculty of Economics majoring in Accounting and also graduated from the Faculty of Law), and has completed his legal master. The founder and his team have handled so many taxation cases, tax audits, and so on. Providing education on taxation has started since 2005. IBU Consulting is a registered and certified Tax Consultant under the Minister of Finance. There are numerous tax consultants in Bali, particularly in Denpasar, the hub of tourism in Bali, who can assist companies or entrepreneurs involved in tourism with tax issues. This is especially helpful for those who encounter difficulties or obstacles with taxation.