O.C.G.A. § 48-1-6 (2019)
Unlawful filing of false documents; omissions; tax evasion; penalty
(a) It shall be unlawful for any person, willfully and with intent to defraud the state, to:
(1) File any return, report, protest, or claim for refund containing any false or fraudulent statement known by the person to be false;
(2) Omit knowingly and intentionally any fact, circumstance, condition, or thing in any written document, the omission of which constitutes a material misstatement or misrepresentation of fact; or
(3) By any trick, device, scheme, or plan, evade or attempt to evade any tax, license, penalty, interest, or other amount due the state.
(b) Any person who violates subsection (a) of this Code section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.
History
Ga. L. 1937-38, Ex. Sess., p. 77, § 43;
Code 1933, § 91A-9902, enacted by Ga. L. 1978, p. 309, § 2.
Annotations
JUDICIAL DECISIONS Legitimately minimizing taxes permitted. - Legitimate arrangement of one’s affairs so as to minimize or avoid taxes differs from sham transactions designed to camouflage the actual
situation; the former are permissible, but the latter are disapproved and may result in penalty or criminal prosecution. Whitley v. Whitley, 220 Ga. 471, 139 S.E.2d 381, 1964 Ga. LEXIS 585 (1964).
RESEARCH REFERENCES Am. Jur. 2d. 71 Am. Jur. 2d, State and Local Taxation, §§ 512, 513, 514. C.J.S. 37 C.J.S., Fraud, § 1 et seq. 47C C.J.S., Internal Revenue, § 855 et seq. 84 C.J.S., Taxation, §§ 85, 491 et seq. 85 C.J.S., Taxation, §§ 1251 et seq., 1715. ALR. Right of grantor or transferor or his privies to attack conveyance or transfer made for purpose of evading taxation, 118 A.L.R. 1184. Misrepresentation as to tax law as
within rule that party to contract or other instrument may not rely upon misrepresentation as to matters of law, 153 A.L.R. 538. Test of “wilfulness” in prosecution for wilful failure to pay tax, file tax return, etc., under § 7203 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954 (26 USC § 7203), 22 A.L.R.3d 1173. Construction and application of 26 USCA § 6015(b)(1)(C) requiring that spouse not know of understatement of tax arising from erroneous deduction, credit, or basis to obtain innocent spouse
exemption from liability for tax, 154 A.L.R. Fed. 233; 161 A.L.R. Fed. 373. Construction and application of 26 U.S.C.A. § 6015(b)(1)(C), requiring that
spouse not know of omission of gross income from joint tax return to obtain innocent spouse exemption from liability for tax, 161 A.L.R. Fed. 373.