The Maldives Inland Revenue Authority (MIRA) has presented a case to the Prosecutor General's Office (PG Office) seeking an inquiry and prosecution of Hope Holdings, which provides launch ferry services to islands in Shaviyani and Noonu Atolls under the name "Hope Travels," over allegations of deliberate tax fraud.

MIRA announced that the inquiry uncovered deceptive details present in GST and Income Tax filings made by Hope Holdings from 1 July 2020 to 31 May 2023, aimed at avoiding tax liabilities.

MIRA's investigation revealed that while Hope Holdings Partnership was registered for GST, the "Hope Travels" operation had been running unregistered for a long time. At this time, 89 percent of the overall revenue was excluded from GST returns.

The inquiry showed that MVR 54 million in income and more than MVR three million in GST went unreported to MIRA. Furthermore, MVR 29 million in earnings was not reported in the Income Tax filings for the years 2020 and 2021.

MIRA has also brought charges against Shahid Ibrahim Manik, a partner in the company, and Mohamed Ali, who was instrumental in the operations, alongside Hope Holdings.

MIRA announced that they will persist in addressing individuals involved in such tax-related violations as per the "Tax Crime Mitigation Strategy".

According to Section 64 of the Tax Administration Act, it is illegal to willfully and knowingly participate in any actions to avoid paying owed taxes. It is also a violation to aid a taxpayer with the purpose of enabling them to avoid taxes. MIRA has highlighted that they will pursue actions against parties believed to be involved in tax-related offenses, fraud, or deception as part of their "Tax Crime Mitigation Strategy," designed to create protocols for handling these situations.