In the past, the relationships between world countries were dominated by geopolitical and geostrategic issues, such as military power development and power hegemony.
However, today, globalization has transformed the nature of world country relationships into a more economic one, in the sense that a country’s progress and national security tend to be viewed from an economic perspective as well as its military resources.
This presents a special challenge for intelligence communities and it is time for Indonesian intelligence observers to respond and shift their attention to national economic developments, especially in the field of taxation, which is the main support for Indonesia’s state budget.
Quoting Hendropriyono, AM in his book Filsafat Intelijen (2013), the term “intelligence” covers a very broad understanding because it relates to activities in many fields that take place continuously over time. Intelligence information is valued because of its basic principle of velox et exactus, which means speed and accuracy, not because of the detail and verification of the information. An intelligence unit must demonstrate its effectiveness in gathering certain information for the organization’s benefit.
There is no special intelligence unit in the Tax Service Office (Kantor Pelayanan Pajak) organization, but in terms of activities and actual products, they already exist. In the taxation mechanism in Indonesia, the account representative (AR) can be said to be the spearhead in terms of discovering the state revenue potential. AR generally has the task of providing guidance or advice, consultation, analysis, and supervision to taxpayers.
AR is regulated in the Ministry of Finance Regulation Number 45/PMK.01/2021 concerning Account Representatives at the Tax Service Office. In the context of very broad duties, in practice, an AR is not enough to just wait for information from the DJP’s internal system, thus requiring an understanding of the basics and functions of intelligence in order to obtain information quickly and accurately.
The most basic thing in intelligence is the function of investigation. In the Hanjar Polri Intelligence Teaching Materials, intelligence investigation is any effort, work, and activity carried out in a planned and directed manner in order to find and collect information in this case in the field of taxation, then processed and presented to the head of the tax service office.Investigation can be done using open techniques such as interviews and surveys, as well as closed techniques such as elicitation and tracking or tracing. An AR in this case can utilize several simple examples related to intelligence techniques as follows:
- Flying Observation In general, observation is someone’s vigilance of the surrounding conditions using their senses perfectly accompanied by the best attention and thinking. A flying observation is done without a specific target, for example, observing a new activity or business location that is passed from home to the office or vice versa.
- Media IntelligenceCurrently, the internet, especially social media, has become an alternative place to express oneself, so by following the social media accounts owned by taxpayers, we can obtain information. The easiest to monitor and often updated content is on Instagram. Instagram will load various activities carried out by taxpayers, including their business activities, assets, and lifestyle.
In addition to the two techniques above, there are certainly many other intelligence techniques that can be used, which can be obtained from various relevant sources. The founder of the United States, Benjamin Franklin, once said, “Tell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I learn.” In line with this saying, it is appropriate for us to learn and involve ourselves with experienced parties.
A good example in the field of intelligence and taxation is the Netherlands. The Inter-American Center of Tax Administrations’ Manual CIAT on Tax Intelligence (2006) explains this. The Netherlands has a tax authority called Belastingdienst Nederland, which has been established since 1805 and includes the Fiscale inlichtingen-en opsporingsdienst (FIOD) or fiscal intelligence and investigation unit.
In carrying out their duties, Belastingdienst and FIOD have a very good system integration. The intelligence aspect is an integral part of their supervisory system. Intelligence information is used to determine targets and identify risks.
For example, they are divided into several sectors such as construction, trade, service industry, bars and restaurants, health, and others. Then each sector is analyzed and identified by several staff members.
Several successful intelligence operations in recent years include the Accounts project: information from Belgium about a number of Dutch citizens registering accounts in Luxembourg (Tax Haven Country), which successfully increased tax revenue by 50 million euros. The Foreign assets project uncovered secret assets stored in foreign countries, which successfully increased revenue by 100 million euros.
Through the various examples above, it is hoped that Indonesian tax employees will be motivated and enthusiastic in continuing the struggle to gather state revenue.
