Keeping two sets of accounts to avoid tax

Question

Question: Our shop keeps two accounts, one correct and one incorrect. The first is kept with ourselves, and the second is given to the government. Is this permissible, given that all this is done to avoid non-Sharʿi taxes imposed by the government — for example, shopkeepers generally keep accounts this way? Is there any sin in it?

Answer

Lying is haram; adopting permissible measures for protection from injustice is valid.

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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