Equatorial Guinea

Taxable period

The taxable period is from 1 January to 31 December for CIT purposes.

Tax returns

CIT returns must be filed within the first four months of the year following the taxable fiscal year.

Payment of tax

Payment of CIT must be made within 15 days from the day following the date of receipt of the tax liquidation issued by the Ministry of Finance and Budget.

The MIT of 1% of the previous year's turnover is payable before 31 March.

Penalties

Penalties of XAF 200,000 per month late, up to 75% of the tax owed, apply for late filing of CIT returns.

A penalty of 50% to 100% of the undeclared amount applies in case of shortfall in the return and in case of arbitrary settlement, 50% of the total amount if the good faith of the taxpayer is established or assumed and 100% wherever the taxpayer does not prove good faith.

Tax audit process

There is no specific provision related to the tax audit cycle in Equatorial Guinea.

Statute of limitations

The statute of limitations is five years from the date the tax is due.

Topics of focus for tax authorities

Topics systematically assessed by tax authorities in the framework of audits are:

• WHT of the oil and gas sector.
• PIT and social contributions.

In the framework of recent audits, the tax authorities are more and more interested in assessing transfer pricing operations and VAT on services rendered in Equatorial Guinea by foreign vendors.