A senior official at the Maldives Inland Revenue Authority (MIRA) has threatened to waive the requirement of externally audited financial statements.

Businesses that garner over MVR 10 million annually are currently required to file a financial statement along with their tax returns, which can be approved by any licensed auditor.

“We are analyzing the impact on audit firms and agents, if we start accepting returns without audited financial statements” the official said in a group message thread on instant-messaging app Viber, where a number of auditors and accountants are members.

If such a policy is implemented, auditors at MIRA will be solely licensed to audit financial reports – as they would in order to ensure that returns tally. Therefore, this decision would only effect external or third-party auditors.

While this is one of the largest sources of income for auditors, the threat seems to have come in response to comments made against MIRA’s operation.