34. International Public Finance Conference
Effect of Tax Debt on Participation to Public Procurements
Yeliz Neslihan Akın, Salim Ateş OktarIn terms of public procurement, the finalised tax debt has been regulated as a barrier of participation to tenders only in Public Procurement Law no. 4734. The authority to determine the type and amount of finalised tax debt regulated as a proficiency criteria as well, has been given to the Public Procurement Authority with the Law No. 4734. While the Public Procurement Authority uses this legal authority, must obtain appropriate opinion of Revenue Administration. The finalised social security premium debt also has been regulated as a barrier of participation to tenders in Law no. 4734, therefore it is considered that the legislator had the intendment to point out the scope of the tax in a narrow sense with the phrase OF finalised tax debt. According to our opinion, tax loss fines, late fee and interests and charges regulated as types of finalised tax debt in General Notification on Public Procurement aren’t not included in the scope of narrow and technical sense of tax debt. For this reason, it is considered that these regulations are contrary to Law no. 4734. In this context, it is recommended to change as a finalised receivable or overdue debt the phrase of finalised tax debt in Law no. 4734. Additionally, regulating the legal consequences of finalised tax debt in all procurement laws in the public procurement legislation will be more appropriate for equity and desired interest in terms of public budget.