A Christchurch labour only contractor has been fined for failing to give Inland Revenue (IR) information it had requested.
Larnce James Schimanski was due to start a Judge alone trial in the Christchurch District Court on 19 October 2026. He pleaded guilty on the day of the trial.
Schimanski was fined $3,500 for not providing information to Inland Revenue when required to do so.
Two returns filed at the beginning of 2023 both claimed large refunds and an investigation was started because five other returns he filed also resulted in refunds.
During 2023 several information requests were made under s 46 of the Goods and Services Tax Act 1985 seeking information about four of the returns he filed. Web messages and reminders were also sent during 2023.
An audit letter was sent to Schimanski in February 2024 requesting (among other things) bank statements, invoices for purchases and sales, GST working papers, and receipts for payments made.
During a phone call in March 2024 Schimanski said his laptop was broken and he couldn’t print the bank statements. He refused to supply his bank account detail to allow Inland Revenue to seek the information from his bank.
In July 2024 Schimanski supplied some bank account details but not all so in September 2024 Inland Revenue hand delivered to his home a formal notice under s17B of the Tax Administration Act.
The s17B notice required the information requested to be supplied to Inland Revenue.
During a phone conversation Schimanski said he had most of the information but said he was busy and asked IR to call back later. Subsequent calls were not answered; no information was received; and there was no response to further letters sent to him.