He is one of a handful of hawkers willing to pay tax professionals so they can have peace of mind
Apr 22, 2007
PEACE of mind comes with a $7,000-a-year price tag for coffee shop owner Oh Tien Fatt - that's what he pays a number cruncher to keep his taxes straight.
Those hefty accountant's fees really hurt last year as his barbecue seafood business ended up $10,000 in the red, but Mr Oh still felt it was better to get the numbers in order for the taxman.
Every week, Mr Oh's accountant visits his Chong Pang shop to collect a pile of receipts detailing his expenses and income.
Mr Oh, 58, said in Mandarin: 'I have had little education and do not know my maths well. How can I possibly handle such a huge amount of money myself?'
He is right to play it safe - 12 hawkers and companies running food stalls have already been hauled up for trying to cheat the taxman by under-declaring earnings, a temptation given the cash nature of the food trade.
One hawker made $4 million in six years but declared only half of that.
The man in his 50s has since paid the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore more than $1 million in unpaid tax and penalties.
The Sunday Times approached 50 hawkers yesterday - 30 brushed us off for intruding into their privacy, but 20 were willing to talk about how they file their taxes.
Four hired professionals to do the sums for them. Mr Kenneth Lee, 45, who co-owns a coffee shop in Toa Payoh, said: 'Because we hired an accountant, we have not faced any problem.'
His peace of mind costs $800 a year while Mr Yee Loon Teck, who sells fish porridge at Chomp Chomp in Serangoon Gardens, pays $250 a year for his.
'I've never evaded. I'm scared of getting fined,' said Mr Yee.
The cash they fork out is money well spent given the penalties for tax dodging. Those caught can be made to pay three times the tax evaded, jailed up to three years and fined up to $10,000.
But most hawkers still go it alone, filling in forms by hand with guesstimates of income and expenses before mailing them in.
Only six filed forms online, usually roping in children or relatives to help out.
But the hawkers admit it is difficult to keep proper records.
Accountant Nicholas Lim, who has about 10 hawkers as clients, said their claims are usually more difficult than most businesses.
'They always have missing receipts,' said Mr Lim, 32. 'When I ask them, they will say they misplaced them or that their supplier did not issue any.'
Some, like 53-year-old Ang Seng Kiat, who sells Western food in Chong Pang, admits he gives only estimates to the tax man: 'My wife and I have no time to keep proper records as we work 16 hours a day. By the end of the day, we just want to go home and rest.'
But others like Mrs Ng Hwee Ngoh, who works at Tian Tian Cooked Food in Chong Pang Hawker Centre, make it a point to note down every sale.
Mrs Ng, 48, said: 'We keep our receipts and pass them to my mother and husband, who keep the accounts on a daily basis.'