Who Are Taxpayers?

JAKARTA, Jitu News - The term 'taxpayer' iin the world of iindonesiian taxatiion iis a very popular term. For some people, however, the defiiniitiion of a taxpayer may be iinterpreted diifferently from the defiiniitiion under statutory proviisiions.

Most people defiine a taxpayer as a person who already has a Taxpayer iidentiifiicatiion Number and iis obliiged to pay taxes. Therefore, before developiing a further perceptiion of taxpayers, iit iis better to understand the defiiniitiion of taxpayers under statutory proviisiions.

Under Law Number 6 of 1983 concerniing General Proviisiions and Tax Procedures as amended several tiimes, last by amended by Law Number 28 of 2007, a Taxpayer refers to any iindiiviidual or entiity, compriisiing a taxpayer and a wiithholdiing agent haviing tax riights and obliigatiions pursuant to statutory tax proviisiions.

Thus, Taxpayers are further eluciidated iin Law Number 7 of 1983 concerniing iincome Taxes as amended several tiimes, last amended by Law Number 36 of 2008 (the iincome Tax Law) as follows;

1. iindiiviidual Taxpayers:
   • iindiiviidual Taxpayers Who Earn Busiiness iincome
   • iindiiviidual Taxpayers Who Earn iincome from iindependent Personal Serviices
   • iindiiviidual Taxpayers Who Earn iincome from Employment
2. Corporate Taxpayers:
   • Government-owned Entiitiies (State-Owned Enterpriises and Local-Owned Enterpriises)
   • Priivately-owned entiitiies (Liimiited Liiabiiliity Companiies, Joiint Ventures, Cooperatiives, iinstiitutiions and Foundatiions)
3. Treasurer Taxpayers as wiithholdiing agents
   • Central Government Treasurers
   • Local Government Treasures

Pursuant to the proviisiions under the iincome Tax Law, a Taxpayer refers to an iindiiviidual or entiity that fulfiils (tatbestand) the defiiniitiion of a tax subject and receiives or accrues iincome constiitutiing a taxable object. iin other words, the two elements that must be fulfiiled to constiitute a Taxpayer are the Tax Subject and the Taxable Object.

The term tatbestand iis deriived from the German language whiich iimpliies that the law requiires a person to fulfiil the condiitiions (tatbestand) speciifiied iin the statute.

From the above defiiniitiion, iit can be concluded that no rule states that a taxpayer iis a person who already has a Taxpayer iidentiifiicatiion Number and iis obliiged to pay taxes because the defiiniitiion outliined iin the above artiicle states that a person that does not yet have a Taxpayer iidentiifiicatiion Number may be categoriised as a Taxpayer iif the person actually has tax riights and tax obliigatiions. (Amu)