Declarations on terms of payment: 1st countdown
The first implementation of the law on payment deadlines, which fell due on Tuesday October 31, lived up to all its promises. The operation resulted in 4,700 declarations via the Simpl platform of the General Tax Directorate (DGI). All the targeted entities that had exceeded the legal threshold complied with the obligation to file.
Of the declarations filed, 1,600 were accompanied by payment of the corresponding financial penalty. This brings the total amount of fines paid online to 130 million Dirhams (US 13 million). This represents consolidated outstanding payments of around 4.3 billion Dirhams (US 430 million) for the period from July to the end of September 2023 alone, bearing in mind that the amount of the fine is not uniform. It stands at 3% for the first month of delay, increased by 0.85% for each additional month or fraction of a month of delay. Moreover, in the first phase, only invoices of 10,000 Dirhams (US 1,000) incl. VAT, issued between July 01 and September 30, are concerned. The new legislation on payment terms targets companies with sales in excess of 50 million Dirhams (US 5 million) excluding tax, a threshold exceeded by barely 4,700 companies, which is indicative of the size of national businesses and the economic fabric in general.
The next declaration covers invoices with a value of over 10,000 dirhams (incl. tax) issued between October 01 and December 31, 2023. Taxpayers will also have to declare invoices dating from the 3rd quarter that have not been paid on time or have been partially paid, until all outstanding amounts have been settled (see L’Economiste # 6629 of 30/10/2023). The same exercise will have to be carried out for 4th quarter (and 3rd quarter) arrears no later than January 31, 2024. Taxpayers will need to be particularly vigilant when it comes to invoices. In fact, «unbilled deliveries, which are the subject of a simple delivery note, should be monitored in particular, as the risk of oversight is higher in this case, especially as, in the absence of these supporting documents, these deliveries are not yet integrated into the accounts, especially for non-computerized entities», recommends Soufyane Aboukad, chartered accountant, partner at SAB Consulting and former president of the tax and legal commission of the Moroccan Employers Confederation (CGEM) for the Souss-Massa region.
Hassan EL ARIF
