The Directorate of Tax Investigations in Iceland has yet to purchase evidence proving Icelanders guilty in over 400 instances of illegal tax evasion, reports Vísir.
“We are working on the issue and I believe we are about to settle it,” said Head of the Directorate of Tax Investigations, Bryndís Kristjánsdóttir, though she would not comment further on the matter or go into specific details as yet.
As reported in February, Bryndís struggled to gain political and financial backing from the Icelandic government to obtain these documents after Finance Minister, Bjarni Benediktsson, was initially hesitant to purchase the information based on the ability to use said info in court.
That the Finance Minister was slow to react was met with criticism from the opposition who cited several other European nations, including Germany, that had purchased similar information and successfully charged and sentenced tax dodgers for evasion.
The Finance Minister eventually conceded but not before insinuations were made that he had been slow to react to the Tax Directorate’s requests for assistance in order to shield his own familial relations – accusations which he vehemently denied.
“The current ruling coalition has no intention of going soft on those who shirk their social responsibility by dodging taxes,” said Bjarni.
Last year the Finance Minister came under fire after his family was granted early access to an unadvertised share sale that allowed them to purchase a stake in public assets via a holding company registered in Luxembourg.
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