The Asahi Shimbun failed to declare about 830 million yen in taxable income in the three years to March 31, 2006, and has been ordered to pay some 350 million yen in back and punitive taxes, informed sources said Wednesday.
According to newspaper officials, the taxable income includes 4 million yen in commissions on sales of soft drinks from vending machines at some of its regional bureaus. The Tokyo Regional Taxation Bureau determined that the 4 million yen was hidden income subject to penalty tax.
The tax bureau also said Asahi should have included as taxable income the entire amount it was supposed to receive from its affiliates to cover the salaries of employees that the paper transferred to them.