Faced with a structural fiscal deficit, there is no doubt about the sense of crisis among the Hong Kong government for raising more revenue while cutting down expenditure.

But any attempt to cite the worsened deficit as a major reason for the tax authorities to set their eyes on freelance journalists and low-budget online media for their possibly undisclosed taxable income is inconceivable.

Any tax experts familiar with the income levels of journalists should know they earn much less than other professionals such as lawyers and doctors, who are reportedly also the target of the tax authorities.

There may be some truth in claims that it is not unusual practice for the authorities to hunt for unreported or under-reported income of professionals in some sectors. But taking into account cost-effectiveness, targeting the pockets of lowly-paid journalists is questionable, to put it mildly.

Given that background, it is not a surprise that the rare moves by the Inland Revenue Department (IRD) to target a batch of non-mainstream journalists who are either self-employed or working in independent outlets and their family members have reportedly caused confusion and stress among them and their families.

It was revealed that they were asked to prepay a combined total of about HK$1 million for the yet-to-be-completed reassessments of their income dated back to seven years ago.

The worrying signs

The revelation has spooked concerns in some quarters of the media and society at large about the worrying signs of those who are deemed as trouble-makers being given disproportionate attention by various government departments in recent years.

One headline-hitting case featured small-sized independent bookstores. Some are said to be the destination of frequent visits by staff from departments including food and hygiene and fire services, often saying they had acted on complaints.

Speaking at a press conference on May 21, chairperson of the Hong Kong Journalists Association Selina Cheng said at least six independent outlets and 20 individuals, including the heads of media outlets and their spouses, have received notification of audits and additional tax demands since November 2023.

The outlets include InMedia,The Witness, ReNews, Boomhead, Hong Kong Free Press (HKFP), and one that did not wish to be named.

Cheng said one case involved an individual who did not run any companies received a notice from the IRD with a business registration number, and was asked to pay tax for the firm. The union did a company search and found the number did not exist.

Another media outlet had its tax audit for a financial year before the company was set up, she added.

Targeting journalists

In response to an enquiry by HKFP, the IRD said that the authority “has established procedures” to review the information provided by taxpayers and to verify the amount of tax payable.

“If there is any information showing that any person may have breached the provisions of the Inland Revenue Ordinance (IRO), the IRD will follow up the case in accordance with the IRO,” the IRD said.

The IRD did not elaborate the “established procedures” and grounds for a review of tax payment. Nor did it give the number of tax reviews in each financial year.

The spokesperson said: “The industry or background of a taxpayer has no bearing on such reviews.”

Beh Lih Yi, the Asia programme coordinator of the Committee to Protect Journalists, told HKFP that the IRD’s move was “preposterous” and a “weaponisation of financial and tax measures” targeting journalists.

As of Saturday, the Government had not responded to the comments by the CPJ.

Make no mistake. Journalists are not more equal than others. Like other income-earners, they are required to pay tax. They are not exempted from a tax review. The tax authorities are given the power and the duty of collecting tax that should be paid in accordance with the law.

But the power of conducting a review must be exercised without bias of various kinds – but with good reasons and fact-based evidence. Any case with dubious background will fuel speculation about whether there are other non-taxation motives behind it, inflicting damage on the credibility and image of the tax authorities.

▌ [At Large] About the Author

Chris Yeung is a veteran journalist, a founder and chief writer of the now-disbanded CitizenNews; he now runs a daily news commentary channel on Youtube. He had formerly worked with the South China Morning Post and the Hong Kong Economic Journal.