Tax crimes account for 86pc of financial intelligence value, Parliament hears
Economic Affairs Committee says tax-related financial crime poses risks to revenue and public finances
Tuesday 29 September 2026 | 07:30
Assistant Minister in the Office of the Prime Minister and committee chairperson Sakiusa Tubuna with Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Tourism Viliame Gavoka in Parliament on September 28, 2026.
Photo: Parliament of Fiji
Tax crimes accounted for about 86 per cent of the total transaction value linked to financial intelligence cases disseminated in 2024, Parliament heard yesterday.
This revelation has raised concerns about the impact on Fiji’s revenue collection and public finances.
The figure was highlighted by the Standing Committee on Economic Affairs in its review of the 2024 Fiji Financial Intelligence Unit (FFIU) Annual Report, which was tabled in Parliament.
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Assistant Minister in the Office of the Prime Minister and chairperson of the committee, Sakiusa Tubuna, said the level of tax-related financial crime showed significant exposure within Fiji’s financial system and posed risks to national revenue collection, fiscal sustainability and public confidence.
“FFIU handled an enormous volume of financial information in 2024. “It managed a database of about 87 million financial transactions and received 6.14 million transaction reports during the year,” Mr Tubuna said.
He noted that there were 304 suspicious transaction reports and that intelligence products were disseminated to law enforcement agencies and Government stakeholders.
However, while the figures showed the scale of financial information being monitored, the committee raised questions about what happened after intelligence was passed on.
The committee identified a gap between intelligence generated by the FFIU and actual outcomes, such as investigations, prosecutions, convictions and asset recovery.
“There are concerns about the quality, timeliness and operational usefulness of some intelligence products,” he said, adding that additional investigative work was often required before they could support enforcement decisions.
“We called for stronger feedback mechanisms and closer coordination between the FFIU and agencies receiving its intelligence,” Mr Tubuna said.
The committee also noted that the FFIU annual report did not include annual performance targets, measurable indicators or clear benchmarks.
It recommended that future reports focus more on measurable outcomes so Parliament and the public can assess the effectiveness of the unit’s work.
“Strengthening intelligence, technology, oversight, performance measurement and cooperation between agencies would be critical in tackling financial crime,” Mr Tubuna said.
