SAN MARINO – The Congress of State intervenes on the recent Italian news reports relating to an international VAT fraud in the automotive sector, specifying how the investigations described do not highlight any involvement of economic operators active in the Republic of San Marino. The facts that have emerged outline a fraudulent system based on the use of legal entities that do not exist under the San Marino legal system and on the falsification of the documentation relating to the payment of the single-phase tax. There are no economic activities carried out on the territory of the Republic nor the involvement of duly authorized San Marino companies. The conduct under investigation was conceived and carried out outside the country’s economic system, which is referred to exclusively as a documentary reference without concrete evidence in operational reality. The Republic has in fact progressively strengthened its control system. With the Delegated Decree, the digital register of economic operators operating in the vehicle trade sector was established, accessible to the competent administrative authorities, the police forces and the Financial Information Agency. The legislation also introduced the obligation of a bank guarantee of 200,000 euros for new operators in the sector and for specific changes to the corporate structure, also providing for a complex system of controls, sanctions and checks on the location and movement of vehicles. These are tools introduced expressly to strengthen the monitoring of the sector and counteract distortionary phenomena of the economy. It is no coincidence that, in the most recent assessments by control bodies, the motor vehicle trade sector today presents significantly reduced risk profiles compared to the past, confirming the effectiveness of the measures adopted. The evolution of fraudulent phenomena at a European level also confirms the validity of the path undertaken. According to data emerging from recent news, for example, out of approximately 50,000 registrations in Italy attributable to vehicles coming from Poland, 35,000 are concentrated in the Naples area. An element that highlights how certain phenomena have very specific territorial characteristics and confirms that the organizations dedicated to such activities tend to operate in contexts different from those that have progressively strengthened their control systems. Secretary Rossano Fabbri intervenes on the matter on behalf of the Government: “Considering the Republic of San Marino to criminal schemes based on document falsification, in the absence of effective involvement of San Marino economic operators, risks generating a representation that does not correspond to reality and causing reputational damage to institutions and companies that operate correctly in compliance with the rules”. San Marino will continue to invest in prevention, international cooperation and in strengthening supervisory tools. Our country has determinedly chosen the path of transparency, traceability and collaboration with the competent authorities to combat any form of economic crime.
