Pkrevenue.com

Day: November 9, 2021

  • KTBA submits recommendations for e-filing of appeals

    KTBA submits recommendations for e-filing of appeals

    KARACHI: Karachi Tax Bar Association (KTBA) has submitted suggestions to the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) for the implementation of electronic filing of appeals in sales tax and federal excise.

    The tax bar sent a set of recommendations to the FBR on Tuesday for e-filing of appeals in sales tax and federal excise regimes.

    The KTBA said that a distinct numerical number should be allotted to each appeal and similarly acknowledgment for each appeal should be served to the appellant from the concerned Commissioner Appeals.

    A digital or web based form has been proposed to be prescribed that essentially contains basic information about the case, including appellant’s name and its number, tax periods, order jurisdiction/section, order date and tax demanded etc. This feature though omitted from income tax regime with introduction of e-filing of appeals, has been suggested to be reintroduced in like manner.

    The KTBA said that currently late e-filing of appeals under the income tax regime is conditional to acceptance of application for condonation of time by the concerned commissioner appeals. The tax bar suggested that no such condition should be adopted in the sales tax e-appeals and the same should also be done away with from e-appeals under the income tax regime.

    The rules for fixation and disposal of stay application should have definite deadlines for the concerned commissioner appeals to follow mandatorily with consequences. “Needless to add that the timelines prescribed under Rule 76G of the Income Tax Rules 2002 are not practiced in letter and spirit.”

    The tax bar said that all notices and orders in appeals proceedings shall effectively be served via primary modes as provided under Section 56(1)(a), 56(1)(b) of the Sales Tax Act, 1990 and in case this being not possible only then option of service of notices and orders via secondary modes as provided under Section 56(1)(c) and (d) of the Act shall be exploited. “The date of service of notice or order shall essentially be reckoned in like manner.”

    The KTBA said that all notices and orders including stay orders issued by the concerned commissioner appeals should seamlessly be served to the concerned field formations so that the IRIS portal is updated bilaterally in real-time.

    The tax bar further proposed that the portal should have dedicated link to upload: written arguments; and miscellaneous applications for multiple reasons etc.

    The FBR has been suggested that the draft e-appeal procedure should be shared with the KTBA prior to launching in order to undertake enhanced due diligence.

    Further, before adoption of the new system, the manual filing of appeal as in vogue currently should be run concurrently for some time.

    KTBA highlights issues in implementing digital payments
  • Pakistan’s fiscal deficit lowers by 9.5% in first quarter

    Pakistan’s fiscal deficit lowers by 9.5% in first quarter

    KARACHI: Pakistan’s fiscal balance in the outgoing first quarter of 2021/2022 posted a deficit of PKR 438 billion, -9.5 per cent YoY lower than prior year’s deficit, according to data released by the finance ministry on Tuesday.

    In terms of per cent GDP, the deficit arrived at 0.8 per cent in 1QFY22 compared to 1.1 per cent recorded in 1QFY21 (PKR 484 billion), said analysts at Arif Habib Limited.

    However, the primary surplus during the period stood at PKR 184 billion (0.3 per cent of GDP in 1QFY22) , down 29 per cent YoY, compared to a primary surplus of PKR 258 billion witnessed same period last year (0.6 per cent of GDP).

    Primarily, total revenue growth of 22 per cent in 1QFY22 to PKR 1.8 trillion (1QFY21: PKR 1.5 trillion) aided the fiscal balance, translating into 3.4 per cent of GDP vs. 3.2 per cent same period last year.

    The total tax revenue collection was up by 37 per cent YoY to PKR 1.5 trillion. Indirect taxes (+42 per cent YoY to PKR 917 billion) mainly on the back of higher sales tax (+43 per cent YoY to PKR 264 billion), and direct taxes (+32 per cent YoY to PKR 481 billion amid higher number of tax payers), contributed to the overall collection.

    In addition, the government collected PKR 276 billion in non-tax revenues, displaying a decline of 23 per cent YoY. This was particularly owed to lower Petroleum Levy (-90 per cent YoY | PKR 13 billion). On the flipside, the surplus profit of State Bank of Pakistan and Pakistan Telecommunication Authority increased during 1QFY22 to PKR 109 billion (+4 per cent YoY) and PKR 30 billion (+269 per cent YoY), respectively.

    In addition, total expenditures went up by 14 per cent YoY to PKR 2.3 trillion (4.2 per cent of GDP vs. 4.3 per cent of GDP in 1QFY21).

    Further breakup revealed that current expenditure underwent an uptick of 9 per cent YoY of which defence rose by 17 per cent YoY.

    However, the markup expenses went down by 16 per cent YoY to PKR 623 billion. Moreover, development expenditure and net lending undertaken by the government increased by 38 per cent YoY to PKR 180 billion.

    Total PSDP expenditure in 1QFY22 arrived at PKR 262 billion (+63 per cent YoY) with provincial expenditure at PKR 154 billion (+71 per cent YoY), outdoing federal disbursement of PKR 108 billion (+53 per cent YoY).

    Pakistan’s fiscal deficit narrows in nine months
  • FPCCI, IBA to collaborate for budget proposals, research

    FPCCI, IBA to collaborate for budget proposals, research

    KARACHI: Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) and Institute of Business Administration (IBA) have agreed to collaborate in policy research and formulating proposals for federal and provincial budgets.

    The two institutions have agreed to collaborate in the spheres of Data-based Policy Research; Data Sharing; formulating Proposals for Monetary Policy and Federal & Provincial Budgets; Policy Advocacy; conducting Economic Surveys, etc., according to a press release on Tuesday.

    Mohammad Younus Dagha, Chairman of FPCCI’s Policy Advisory Board & Dr. Akbar Zaidi, Executive Director of IBA Karachi, signed a Memorandum of Understanding at a ceremony attended by the press representatives at the FPCCI Headquarters, Federation House, Karachi.

    Mian Nasser Hyatt Maggo, President FPCCI, said that a strong proponent of industry-academia linkages & cooperation, he has always pursued the promotion of knowledge-based economy and the MoU is a manifestation of his vision for FPCCI.

    Mian Nasser Hyatt Maggo maintained that, to him, FPCCI & IBA are natural allies as FPCCI is the apex representative business & trade body of Pakistan and IBA is one of the most prestigious business schools of Pakistan.

    Mohammad Younus Dagha said that Policy Advocacy, the primary function of FPCCI, should be data-driven & evidence-based. Policy advocacy should be the primary function of FPCCI; but, it has to be grounded in hard facts to be valid, pragmatic and result-oriented.

    Dagha added that an effective policy advice has to reconcile the inspirations of entrepreneurs & expectations of the society at large. He said that the Policy Advisory Board has therefore started its journey by joining hands with the academia & economic think tanks; as well as NGOs working in social sectors.

    Amjad Rafi, a Senior Member of FPCCI & a Member of the Board of Governors of IBA, emphasized that business & industry should start looking towards academia & researchers for solutions to their real-world management & operational issues for indigenous, sustainable and research-based ideas; in order to contribute to socioeconomic growth & employment generation.

    Dr. Akbar Zaidi said that FPCCI & IBA are old allies and, historically, IBA has always had a member from FPCCI on its board. He expressed his satisfaction that the MoU is a step forward. He added that IBA is a university now; but, its business school continues to be the most important part of it.

    FPCCI disagrees with high markup on SME financing
  • Traders seek help against police highhandedness

    Traders seek help against police highhandedness

    KARACHI: Traders have sought help from Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) against the highhandedness of police officers in dealing with shopkeepers.

    Members of a delegation from Jama Alliance Market Association (JAMA), while expressing deep concerns over rising incidents of thefts in the Jama Markets and the poor behavior of police officers in dealing with shopkeepers, requested the Karachi Chamber to take up this serious issue with the high-ups in police department in order to put an end to the highhandedness of police officers.

    They also sought KCCI’s help in deployment of women police officers at Jama Markets where incidents of thefts were widely being reported everyday and all of them were being carried out by women culprits.

    The help was sought at a meeting during the visit of JAMA delegation to KCCI, which was led by Chairman JAMA Sheikh Muhammad Irshad. President KCCI Muhammad Idrees, Senior Vice President KCCI Abdul Rehman Naqi, Vice President KCCI Qazi Zahid Hussain, Chairman of KCCI’s Special Committee for Small Traders Majeed Memon and Managing Committee Members also attended the meeting.

    Speaking on the occasion, Chairman JAMA Sheikh Muhammad Irshad pointed out that shopkeepers of Jama were worst sufferers of lockdowns and to date, they haven’t recovered from the losses, leading to closure of many shops. These shopkeepers have been facing immense hence, it was very necessary that the government should look into the possibility of extending interest-free financing facility to them so that they could stay afloat. “Jama Alliance Market Association can be engaged as guarantor in the process of interest-free financing and we will recommend only those trustworthy shopkeepers who would certainly payback all their debts”, he said, adding that this financing facility was desperately needed for survival of business at Jama Market which was the oldest market of the country.

    While referring to anti-encroachment drive, he said that around 192 shops of Jinnah Market mostly engaged in frame-making and Dupatta (scarf) dying businesses were razed and to date, these displaced shopkeepers have not received alternate shops. KCCI should take up this issue with Sindh with a view to provide relief to perturbed shopkeepers and their families.  

    President KCCI Muhammad Idrees, in his remarks, informed that KCCI was in constant touch with Commissioner Karachi Iqbal Memon and Administrator Karachi Murtaza Wahab and Additional Inspector General Yaqub Minhas who will soon be visiting KCCI to discuss numerous issues. “We will invite JAMA members to these meetings where they will get a perfect opportunity to highlight their grievances directly in front of decision makers and seek resolution of their problems”, he added.

    He assured that KCCI was always available round the clock to serve small traders and shopkeepers who can either get in touch with Office Bearers, Chairman Special Committee for Small Traders or Police Chamber Liaison Committee (PCLC) any time to get their law & order related issues resolved. “Any unlawful activity being carried out by police officers must also be brought to this Chamber notice in writing and we will make sure that no injustice is being done to any shopkeeper of Jama Cloth Market”, he added.

    While referring to concerns expressed over encroachment drive, President KCCI informed that not a single representative from Jinnah Market has approached KCCI for relocation of their businesses to date. KCCI’s Special Committee for Small Traders under the supervision of Majeed Memon has ensured that alternate shops are allotted to displaced shopkeepers of various markets. “KCCI is ready to take up the problems suffered by shopkeepers of Jinnah Market but the shopkeepers must share details in writing with this Chamber so that we could take up this issue with Administrator Karachi during his forthcoming visit to KCCI”, he added.

    He said that it has always been one of the first and foremost responsibility to give top priority to get small traders’ issues resolved in normal and extraordinary circumstances. “It was KCCI that kept demanding to ease restrictions during lockdown and it was this Chamber which convinced Sindh Government to lift lockdown restriction on Sunday”, he added.

    Chairman Special Committee for Small Traders Majeed Memon said, “As KCCI has remained actively engaged to ensure smooth relocation of displaced businesses of encroachment drive, the affectees of Jinnah Market should not find themselves alone as we are always available to round the clock to help them out.

    All the participants of the meeting paid glowing tribute to Late Siraj Kassam Teli for his relentless efforts towards resolving the issues being faced by the entire business and industrial community particularly those being suffered by small traders and shopkeepers.

    KCCI urges SBP to restore PKR at Rs150 to dollar
  • Stocks plunge by 715 points on PKR weakening

    Stocks plunge by 715 points on PKR weakening

    KARACHI: The stocks plunged by 715 points on Tuesday owing to weakening in the value of Pak Rupee (PKR). The benchmark KSE-100 index of Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) closed at 46400 points as against previous day’s closing of 47,115 points showing a decrease of 715 points.

    Analysts at Arif Habib Limited said that bloodbath session was witnessed today due to the further weakening of Pak Rupee against dollar, concerns on inflation and resumption of foreign selling spree.

    Market opened on a bleak note after the news clocked in the morning that revival of USD six billion stalled IMF program for Pakistan hinges upon stamped clearance of IMF’s two departments before forwarding it in front of the Fund’s Executive Board.

    Textile sector continued to remain under pressure for second consecutive session over concerns on ending of subsidized gas supply.

    Institutional activity remained on the sell-side due to redemptions from the mutual fund industry.

    Accumulation was witnessed in the banking sector as KIBOR rates have witnessed a sharp rise in the past one month, where the spread between the 6M KIBOR and policy rate has touched a high of 162 basis points, increasing from its average spread of 50 basis points.

    In the last trading hour, sell-off was witnessed across the board mainly as investors opted for cautious approach.

    Sectors contributing to the performance include Commercial Banks (-123 points), Cement (-102 points), Technology (-79 points), E&P (-63 points) and Power (-46 points).

    Volumes increased from 364.9mn shares to 434.7 million shares (+19.1 per cent DoD). Traded value also increased by 11.6 per cent to reach US$ 83.1 million as against US$ 74.5 million.

    Stocks that contributed significantly to the volumes include TELE, FFLR1, FNEL, WTL and GGL.

    Stocks fall by 181 points on inflation concerns
  • KIBOR rates on November 09, 2021

    KIBOR rates on November 09, 2021

    KARACHI: State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Tuesday issued the following Karachi Interbank Offered Rates (KIBOR) on November 09, 2021.

     TenorBIDOFFER
    1 – Week7.257.75
    2 – Week7.297.79
    1 – Month7.397.89
    3 – Month8.378.62
    6 – Month8.658.90
    9 – Month8.939.43
    1 – Year9.099.59
    KIBOR rates on November 08, 2021
  • SBP issues customers exchange rates for November 09

    SBP issues customers exchange rates for November 09

    Karachi, November 09, 2021 – The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has published the official exchange rates for customers as of November 09, 2021.

    (more…)
  • Dollar makes sharp gain to end at Rs171.63

    Dollar makes sharp gain to end at Rs171.63

    KARACHI: The US dollar made a gain of Rs1.12 against the Pak Rupee on Tuesday as import payment demand remained high during the day.

    The rupee ended at Rs171.63 to the dollar from the previous day’s closing of Rs170.51 in the interbank foreign exchange market.

    The dollar advanced against the local currency for the second straight trading session. Currency experts said that the rupee made recovery during the past week after Saudi pledge to assist Pakistan in balance of payment.

    However, the dollar for the large import payment has once again started deterioration in the rupee value.

    The import bill registered a growth of 65.15 per cent to $25.06 billion during July – October 2021 as compared with $15.17 billion in the same period of the last fiscal year, according to the PBS.

  • Two basic salaries announced for timely tax inquiry report

    Two basic salaries announced for timely tax inquiry report

    ISLAMABAD: Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has announced an incentive scheme for its officials in completion and timely submission of inquiry reports, official sources said on Tuesday.

    Under the incentive scheme up to two basic salaries have been announced for the authorized officer for submitting inquiry report up to 60 days from receipt of letter nominating inquiry officer/authorized officer.

    The FBR has decided the incentive while observing that most inquiry officers were delaying the finalization of inquiries which lead to delay in conclusion of disciplinary proceedings against the officer/officials of FBR.

    “This not only reflect poorly on the part of inquiry officer, authorized officer, authorized concerned but also puts the career of the accused officers in the state of limbo for longer periods,” the FBR said.

    Therefore, with a view to encourage expeditious finalization of inquiries and with a view to prevent delays in finalization of inquires, the FBR chairman approved the incentive and punitive regime.

    For inquiry officers/inquiry committees/fact finding inquiry officers/fact finding inquiry committees; for submitting quality reports to the satisfaction of the authorized officers/authorized concerned:

    i. Two basic salaries to be given as incentive on submission of inquiry report up to 60 days from receipt of letter nominating inquiry officer / authorized officer.

    ii. One basic salary to be given as incentive on submission of inquiry report up to 75 days from receipts of letter nominating inquiry officer/authorized officer.

    iii. Half basic salary to be given as incentive on submission of inquiry report up to 90 days from receipt of letter nominating inquiry officer/authorized officer.

    For authorized officer the incentive shall be one basic salary on disposal of inquiry report within 30 days from date of receipt of inquiry report.

    For authority the incentive shall be one basic salary for passing order within 30 days from date of receipt of reply to show cause notice/recommendations of inquiry officer / authorized officer.

    The FBR also introduced punitive regime for delaying inquiry report.

    The FBR said that Internal Job Posting (IJP) allowance of inquiry officers/inquiry committee members/fact finding inquiry officer/ fact finding inquiry committee members shall be discontinued who will take more than 100 days to complete the inquiry till completion of such inquires.

    Similar shall apply to authorized officers who take more than 40 days to decide the inquiry; and in case of proceedings against officers’ upto to BS-16; the authority who takes more than 40 days for doing the needful.

    The FBR said any excuse including requests for adjournment, non-availability of record etc., shall not be taken as valid excuse for lack of adherence to the time set for doing the needful. Time will not run only in the case of valid stay order from a court of competent jurisdiction.

    “These instructions will have prospective effect, but these instructions shall be applicable to all pending inquiries from the date of issuance of these instructions by the board. Accordingly, time will from the date of issuance of these instructions.”

    The instruction have been implemented with effect from November 08, 2021.

    FBR warns of action for delaying inquiry reports
  • Rupee falls 84 paisas to dollar in early trade

    Rupee falls 84 paisas to dollar in early trade

    KARACHI: The Pak Rupee (PKR) continued to slide against the dollar in early trade on Tuesday and lost 84 paisa to the foreign currency so far.

    The dollar is being traded at Rs171.35 in the interbank foreign exchange market. The last day closing of the rupee was Rs170.51 to the dollar in the interbank foreign exchange market.

    Currency experts said that the market witnessed higher dollar demand for import payments.

    The local currency recorded the all-time low of Rs175.27 against the dollar on October 26, 2021. However, following the announcement of the Saudi government to support a financial assistance package to Pakistan the rupee had made a sharp gain.

    The experts said that the large imports are major concerns for rupee stability in the coming days. The import bill registered a growth of 65.15 per cent to $25.06 billion during July – October 2021 as compared with $15.17 billion in the same period of the last fiscal year.

    Rupee ends down by 50 paisas to dollar