IPI owes over US$9.4 million in taxes

According to a notice from the Department of Finance’s Division of Revenue and Taxation, the debts go back to 2017.

Northern Mariana Islands.- Saipan casino operator, Imperial Pacific International (IPI) owes the islands’ government over US$9 million in taxes, the Department of Finance claims.

According to a notice of tax lien from the Department of Finance Division of Revenue and Taxation in the Superior Court and the District Court, the total debt in unpaid taxes amounts to US$9,416,887.09.

The notice said that since the demand for payment was made, “there is a lien in favor of the CNMI on all the property and rights to property belonging to the taxpayer for the amount of these taxes and any additional penalties, interest, and costs that may accrue.”

The notice detailed that the casino operator still owes the government US$3.29m from 2017, U$$2.06m from 2018, and for the tax period that ended on December 21 2019 there are debts of US$2.01m and US$2.05m.

IPI also owes the CNMI $25 for a returned check on April 6.

With its casino shut due to the pandemic, IPI requested an abatement from paying its US$15.5 million annual licence fee. However it received a negative response from the authorities and is now at risk of losing its licence.