Tangerang Regency (ANTARA) – The Finance Ministry is targeting 40 companies operating in the steel sector that are suspected of failing to pay their Value Added Tax (VAT) obligations, potentially causing state losses of up to Rp5 trillion per year.“So this is quite significant. When we look at as many as 40 companies, that is a substantial number. We estimate a reduction in state revenue of around Rp4-5 trillion. It is now time for companies to pay their taxes,” Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa said in Tangerang, Banten, on Thursday.Purbaya said the move was part of the government’s commitment to plug tax leakages and ensure the companies fulfill their obligations.“My staff will summon these companies to ensure they understand what we are doing and that going forward they comply with existing regulations,” he added.Purbaya warned that business operators whose companies failed to meet tax obligations would soon be formally summoned to the ministry to ensure their willingness to repay and settle outstanding taxes.“Do not take Indonesia lightly. We will let the process run its course. My staff will call in the company owners. I have heard that the owners have been questioned multiple times, but what matters is that the message is clearly conveyed,” he said.Meanwhile, Director General of Taxes Bimo Wijayanto said the companies were suspected of evading taxes by underreporting revenue or filing inaccurate tax returns to conceal actual turnover.He said the alleged practices took place between 2016 and 2019. Of the 40 companies operating in the steel industry, several companies in the hebel sector have also been identified as being involved in tax irregularities.As a follow-up measure, Wijayanto said the ministry would escalate the cases to the investigation stage involving the companies’ shareholders to clarify the legal status of the companies.Preliminary data show that most of the companies suspected of tax violations are located in the Jakarta and Banten region.