1,800 firms pay taxes three days
after Customs freeze imposition

Out of 4,700 commercial companies suspected of tax violations

The Ministry of Finance has moved aggressively to curb widespread tax evasion, a long-standing drain on State revenues. Minister Yassine Jaber said that authorities have identified 4,700 commercial companies suspected of failing to declare income or pay due taxes.

The ministry recently implemented a ‘Customs freeze’ on non-compliant companies, blocking them from importing and exporting until they regularize their status. The measure triggered a swift reaction: 1,800 companies filed declarations and paid outstanding penalties within just three days, Jaber told Cabinet members on Thursday.

The move is part of a broader enforcement plan developed with the Financial Prosecutor’s Office. Jaber said the two institutions agreed to compile a unified list of all individuals and companies evading taxes of any kind. Charges will be filed under Law 44, Lebanon’s anti-money laundering legislation, which explicitly covers tax evasion as a predicate offense.

Revenue boost without new taxes
The minister said the crackdown is expected to significantly increase State revenues at a time when the IMF is pressuring Lebanon to generate a fiscal surplus. Jaber said that improved tax compliance could allow the government to avoid imposing additional taxes or fees, a politically sensitive issue in a country still reeling from years of inflation, currency collapse, and shrinking household incomes.

He said that a surplus is theoretically achievable today, as liquidity exists in the financial system, but mostly in lira. Injecting this liquidity into the market to cover dollar-denominated obligations could further weaken the exchange rate, complicating fiscal management.

Public sector pressures
Jaber said he has been in contact with the Civil Service Board and the Ministry of Education to explore a gradual salary adjustment plan for public-sector employees in 2026, but he admitted that such an increase is currently not feasible, given the government’s tight cash position and the risk of injecting additional Lebanese-pound liquidity into the economy.