The Auditor General's Office (AGO) has directed the Maldives Inland Revenue Authority (MIRA) to take stronger actions to recover the funds owed to the state.
The 2022 audit report published by MIRA indicated that the government is owed more than USD 908 million as of 2022. The report highlighted issues with the consistent receipt of state revenues and the state's inability to recover the owed amounts. By 2022, the government is expected to collect over USD 908 million in taxes and other revenues, primarily from resort rents. It was also found that USD 600 million of the outstanding resort rent included over USD 400 million in penalties and interest for non-payment.
The report noted the authority's various efforts to recover the state funds. Defaulters have been given 30-day notices to remind them of their payments, and their names have been published on the MIRA website and in the Government Gazette. In addition, details of the defaulters have been shared monthly with the Ministry of Tourism. The report also noted that MIRA has been collaborating with the tourism ministry to address the issue of increasing resort rent arrears. Despite these efforts, the AGO has directed MIRA to implement regular enforcement measures to recover the large outstanding amounts. It also urged MIRA to strengthen the existing measures.
The audit report also revealed that MIRA has not adhered to court orders regarding the payment of state funds. It also noted that the tourism ministry has repeatedly requested the authority's guidance on how to proceed in cases where agreements were wrongly terminated by the court.
The majority of the debt is owed by resort operators, whose names have been publicly disclosed, and the court has ordered them to make payments. However, the enforcement measures against these operators have not been effectively implemented. President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu stated that as of May this year, the total amount of money owed to the state has increased to over USD 973 million.