The High Court today ruled that it was unlawful for the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) to reassess the taxes on three luxury vehicles imported by Guyanese Billionaire Azruddin Mohamed more than three years ago. In its ruling, the Court blocked the Tax Authority from seizing the vehicles.

In the decision, Justice Gino Persaud ruled that the GRA’s imposition of additional taxes totaling $421 Million on Mr. Azruddin Mohamed for the three luxury vehicles, which were imported in 2020 and 2021 was arbitrary, ultra vires, unreasonable, unfair and unlawful.

The Judge also issued an Order Certiorari to quash the GRA’s impositions of additional taxes on Mohamed for the three vehicles.

Mohamed, who is now an Opposition Member of Parliament, had challenged GRA’s authority to seize the the Lamborghini sports car and two Land Cruisers more than three years after they were imported, cleared and registered by the Revenue Authority.

In several correspondences, the GRA indicated that Mohamed owed more than $400M in taxes on the grounds that an investigation revealed that the declared costs of the luxury vehicles were inconsistent with the value for similar vehicles with the same specifications.

In the case of the Lamborghini, the GRA claimed that the luxury sports car carries a cost US$695,000, and not US$75,300 that was declared by the billionaire.

But Justice Persaud explained in his ruling that there is no authority under the Customs Act or the Fifth Schedule for the Revenue Authority to reassess the duties and taxes in March 2025 on vehicles that were entered, and cleared by the GRA in 2020 and 2021.

“The Court finds that there is no legislative support for the reassessment of duties and taxes,” the Judge ruled, explaining that the GRA could have employed provisions in the Act in 2020 and 2021 when the vehicles were imported, but not in 2024 after the vehicles had been cleared.

“Section 72 of the Customs Act does not set out a statutory mechanisms, and it does not allow the Revenue Authority to reassess and impose additional duties and taxes as its remedy for what it says are short, relating to duties,” the Judge said.

However, the Judge said while the Tax Authority cannot reassess the taxes at this time, it does not mean that GRA is without recourse if it subsequently uncovers fraud.

He explained that remedy is provided for in Sections 17 and 18 of the Customs Act, which provides for criminal prosecutions for false declarations on the formal integration of duties, which was done at the level of the Magistrates’ Court, where criminal charges were leveled against Mohamed.

In a statement, Attorney for Mohamed, Siand Dhurjon welcomed the ruling.

Dhurjon said Justice Persaud relied on a number of local cases and ruled that the GRA had no power to embark on post-clearance assessments.

He said the proceedings were delayed and protracted as far as possible by the over 10 attorneys retained by the GRA.

It was pointed out that the GRA sought to file no less than 5 Affidavits in Defence on different dates in response to the single Affidavit filed by Attorneys Siand Dhurjon and Damien Da Silva. The judge ruled that the Civil Procedure Rules does not contemplate the filing of so many affidavits in such manner.

He pointed out that two separate appeals were filed, one of which was fully heard and determined by Justices Roxane George and Nareshwar Harnanan in May, 2025.

“The judge ruled that ‘the application filed on 5^th November, 2025’ was ‘an abuse of the court’s process’. In that application the GRA sought to tell the Court that the extradition request of Azruddin Mohamed was ‘directly relevant to the substantive judicial review proceedings’. The learned judge disagreed and ruled that the request was irrelevant as the judicial review proceedings filed by Mohamed was focused solely on whether or not the imposition of taxes of $421,057,712 and the demand for the surrender of the vehicles was lawful,” the Lawyer explained.

Dhurjon noted that the GRA still owes Mohamed $300,000 as ordered by the Full Court.

The GRA has already stated its intention to appeal the decision of the Court.

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