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  • Rupee falls to new historic low of Rs178.24 to dollar

    Rupee falls to new historic low of Rs178.24 to dollar

    KARACHI: The Pak Rupee (PKR) fell to new historic low of Rs178.24 to the dollar on Wednesday owing to higher demand for import and corporate payments.

    The rupee fell by five paisas against the dollar from last day’s closing of Rs178.19, the previous record low of the rupee, in the interbank foreign exchange market.

    Currency experts said that due to last days of month of December and year closing the dollar demand was high for import and corporate payments.

    The experts said that the rising prices of oil in international markets and corporate payment pushed the demand for dollars.

    They said that surge in import bill and widening current account deficit are major challenges for the rupee in coming days.

    The import bill of the country surged to $33 billion during the first five months (July – November) 2021/2022.

    This resulted in widening of trade deficit resulted in $7 billion current account deficit during the first five months (July – November) 2021/2022.

    READ MORE: SBP sets limits for sale of foreign exchange to individuals

  • Annual collection of capital gain tax falls by 26%

    Annual collection of capital gain tax falls by 26%

    Official data reveals a significant decline of 26% in the annual collection of Capital Gain Tax (CGT) from the disposal of securities during the fiscal year 2020/2021.

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  • FBR deputes officials at jewelry shop for tax monitoring

    FBR deputes officials at jewelry shop for tax monitoring

    ISLAMABAD: The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has deputed officials of Inland Revenue (IR) at a jewelry shop on suspects of underreporting and non-compliance of integration.

    The FBR invoked Section 40B of the Sales Tax Act, 1990, and deputed tax officials at a retail outlet of a leading jeweler in Lahore.

    The FBR issued orders for action under section 40B of the Sales Tax Act, 1990 on DAMAS Jewelers, Lahore which is a large retail outlet of gems and jewelry, located on MM Alam Road, Lahore.

    READ MORE: Point of sale machines allowed tax credit

    The retail outlet was required to integrate with the POS system but despite repeated reminders, it didn’t integrate its business with the Point of Sale System (POS) of FBR. It was prima facie involved in underreporting of the sales, causing substantial loss to the national exchequer.

    It is important to mention that FBR has decided to impose Section 40B at retail outlets of Tier-1 retailers which either haven’t integrated with POS system or continue to flout the law by engaging in fraudulent sales despite opting for integration. The law must be implemented by all means possible.

    READ MORE: Metro Pakistan integrates point of sale with FBR

    Therefore, a team of the Zone-II, Regional Tax Office, Lahore reached the business premises of the Registered Person on 25-12-2021 for action U/S 40B, and started the real-time monitoring of its Sales.FBR will continue with such actions to ensure that the POS integration of all Tier-1 retailers is ensured in letter and spirit.

    This innovative digital initiative aims at monitoring real-time sales and thereby making sure that the tax collected from buyers on the point of sales is deposited in the state exchequer.

    READ MORE: Persons may be appointed for filing e-return

    It is pertinent to mention that FBR has launched a comprehensive campaign on both electronic and print media to educate customers about the scope and significance of the POS system and a lucrative prize scheme worth Rs.53 Million. The lucky 1007 winners will be given away prizes every month through a computer ballot to be held on 15th of every month at FBR Headquarters, Islamabad.

    The first lucky draw will be conducted on January 15, 2022.

    READ MORE: FBR announces first POS prize scheme draw on Jan 15

  • Pak Rupee hits fresh low at Rs178.19 to dollar

    Pak Rupee hits fresh low at Rs178.19 to dollar

    KARACHI: The Pak Rupee hit a fresh low at Rs178.19 to the dollar on Tuesday after falling two paisas in the interbank foreign exchange market.

    The local currency further declined from the last day’s closing of Rs178.17, which was the previous historic low.

    The foreign exchange market witnessed dollar demand for import and corporate payment during the day. However, banks assured dollar supply against the demand, currency experts said.

    They said that following restriction imposed by the central bank on buying of the foreign exchange by individuals from open market, the fall in rupee value was slowed down but continued.

    The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) last week imposed curbs on foreign exchange buying by individuals from the open market in order to discourage speculative gains. As per restrictions an individual can buy a maximum of $10,000 per day and $100,000 in a year.

    The currency experts said that rising import bills and widening of the current account deficit remained a major threat to rupee value.

    READ MORE: SBP sets limits for sale of foreign exchange to individuals

  • FBR collects Rs11 bn income tax on prize bond winning

    FBR collects Rs11 bn income tax on prize bond winning

    ISLAMABAD: The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has collected around Rs11 billion as income tax on the amount paid from winning of prize bonds during fiscal year 2020/2021, according to official data released on Monday.

    The collection of income tax grew by only one per cent during the fiscal year 2020/2021 as compared with Rs10.89 billion in the preceding fiscal year.

    READ MORE: SBP directs banks to accept bearer prize bonds

    On the other hand, the income tax collection on winning from prizes, raffles, or lottery has increased by 97 per cent to Rs518 million during the fiscal year 2020/2021 as compared with Rs263.7 million in the preceding fiscal year.

    The FBR collects income tax under Section 156 of the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001.

    According to the FBR, every person paying prize on a prize bond, or winnings from a raffle, lottery, prize on winning a quiz, the prize offered by companies for promotion of the sale, or cross-word puzzle shall deduct tax from the gross amount paid at the rate specified in Division VI of Part III of the First Schedule.

    READ MORE: History of Prize Bonds in Pakistan

    Where a prize, referred to in sub-section (1), is not in cash, the person while giving the prize shall collect tax on the fair market value of the prize.

    The tax-deductible under sub-section (1) or collected under sub-section (2) shall be a final tax on the income from prizes or winnings referred to in the said sub-sections.

    READ MORE: Income tax on prize bonds, lottery winning

    The tax rate for Tax Year 2022 is:

    (1) The rate of tax to be deducted under section 156 on a prize on prize bond or cross-word puzzle shall be 15 per cent of the gross amount paid.

    (2) The rate of tax to be deducted under section 156 on winnings from a raffle, lottery, prize on winning a quiz, a prize offered by a company for promotion of the sale, shall be 20 per cent of the gross amount paid.

    The total income tax collection under Section 156 of the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001 during the fiscal year 2020-2021 was Rs11.42 billion as compared with Rs11.16 billion in the preceding fiscal year.

    READ MORE: 4th draw of Rs25,000 premium prize bonds announced

  • Customs duty collection from imported vehicles surges by 95%

    Customs duty collection from imported vehicles surges by 95%

    Official data released on Monday indicates a remarkable upswing in the collection of customs duty from imported vehicles during the fiscal year 2020/2021, reflecting a staggering 95 percent growth, reaching Rs111 billion. This surge is in stark contrast to the Rs56.85 billion recorded in the preceding year.

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  • FBR launches sales tax return filing through single portal

    FBR launches sales tax return filing through single portal

    ISLAMABAD: The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) on Monday said the sales tax return for the month of December 2021 will be filed through single portal.

    The FBR in a memorandum said that sales tax return for the tax period of December 2021, which is scheduled to be filed in January 2022, will be filed through the Single Sales Tax Portal.

    READ MORE: Power of the Board and Commissioner to call for records

    In order to allow the registered persons to familiarize themselves with the new system, the uploading of sales tax invoice of December 2021 has been enabled, the FBR said. The old sales tax return will not be available for filing the return for December 2021, it added.

    Therefore, all sales tax registered persons and their representatives have been advised to familiarize themselves with the single sales tax portal.

    READ MORE: Inland Revenue officers promoted to BS-20

    The single portal for sales tax returns has been launched to facilitate taxpayers, promote ease of doing business and reduce compliance cost.

    The FBR said that through this portal, sales tax registered persons shall be able to file a single sales tax return instead of having to file separate returns to the FBR and each of the different provincial sales tax authorities.

    READ MORE: PM to launch single sales tax portal this month

    By filing sales tax on the portal, it will save time and effort besides simplifying the return filing process, the FBR added.

    The portal will minimize data entry and address the issue of data and calculation errors. It will also automatically apportion input tax adjustment as well as payments across the sales tax authorities, eliminating the need for reconciliation and payment transfers.

    The single portal will encourage harmonization of tax procedures, definitions and principals between the federal and provincial governments, which will promote national unity, the FBR said.

    READ MORE: Single sales tax portal to start functioning by month-end

  • Dollar hits new record high at PKR 178.17

    Dollar hits new record high at PKR 178.17

    KARACHI: The US dollar recorded a new record high against Pak Rupee (PKR) at Rs178.17 on Monday. The rupee ended by four paisas against the dollar from last Friday’s closing of Rs178.13 in the interbank foreign exchange market.

    The dollar previously recorded the highest level at Rs178.15 on December 22, 2021.

    Currency experts said that the dollar demand was high due to opening of market after two weekly holidays. They said that year-end demand for corporate payment also put pressure on rupee value.

    They said that the widening of trade deficit and current account deficit are major threats to rupee stability.

    Pakistan’s current account deficit has ballooned to $7 billion during the first five months (July – November) 2021/2022. The current account posted a surplus of $1.87 billion in the same period of the last fiscal year.

    The trade deficit widened by 112 per cent to $20.65 billion during the period under review as compared with $the deficit of 9.72 billion in the same period of the last fiscal year.

    Rupee eases by one paisa against dollar
  • Digital tax monitoring yields Rs32.43bn from sugar sector

    Digital tax monitoring yields Rs32.43bn from sugar sector

    ISLAMABAD: The digital monitoring initiated by the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has resulted in a collection of Rs32.43 billion from the sugar sector during the first half of the current fiscal year.

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  • Bank Alfalah tops in house financing under MPMG

    Bank Alfalah tops in house financing under MPMG

    KARACHI: Bank Alfalah has secured the top position in house financing under the government’s flagship Mera Pakistan Mera Ghar (MPMG).

    According to a statement issued by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), Bank Alfalah secured the top position followed by Meezan Bank Limited and Standard Chartered Bank Limited.

    A ceremony was held on Friday at Prime Minister House, Islamabad to mark Rs 100 billion in home finance approvals of the Governments flagship Mera Pakistan Mera Ghar (MPMG) program under the theme “ Khawab ke tabeer ab tez ter”.

    READ MORE: Financing for Mera Pakistan Mera Ghar gains momentum

    The Prime Minister lauded the leading role of the State Bank of Pakistan and the efforts of the banking industry in the implementation of MPMG. He also witnessed ceremonial keys being handed over to six beneficiaries of MPMG who were from different regions and represented a variety of segments of Pakistan.

    Over 20 other beneficiaries of MPMG also participated in the ceremony. The Prime Minister expressed his pleasure to see that low and middle-income citizens who were completely ignored earlier are now being served by the banks in obtaining home finance. While distributing awards among top-performing banks with respect to approvals and disbursements, he urged banks to accelerate their efforts to help realize the dream of every Pakistani to own their own homes.

    The ceremony was attended by Ali Amin Gandhapur-Federal Minister for Kashmir Affairs & Gilgit Baltistan, Dr. Shahbaz Gill-Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Political Communication, Senator Shaukuat Tareen-Adviser to Prime Minister on Finance & Revenue, Governor State Bank of Pakistan, Chairman NAPHDA, Dr. Amjad Ali-Minister for Housing Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Presidents/CEOs of banks.

    READ MORE: SBP launches webpage for promoting house financing

    Dr. Reza Baqir, Governor State Bank of Pakistan, shared the progress of MPMG since inception, highlighting that all stakeholders are taking steps in the right direction to translate the Prime Minister’s vision of increasing homeownership into reality. Till December 20, 2021, banks have received applications of Rs. 263 billion while approvals of Rs. 109 billion have already been made. Over the last nine months, the approved amount increased by Rs. 98 billion. Disbursement has also increased from almost zero in March 2021 to Rs. 32 billion by December 20, 2021. While shedding light on the theme of the event, he mentioned that during the last month, banks on average approved Rs. 4 billion and disbursed Rs. 1.6 billion on weekly basis. He underscored the need to maintain and accelerate this momentum. There are six banks that disbursed over Rs. 2 billion each and seven banks have disbursed over Rs. 1 billion each in the span of 9 months under MPMG.

    The Governor said that growth in MPMG is attributed to various measures taken by the Government, SBP, and NAPHDA to provide a conducive environment for the banking industry to enter the untapped market of housing and construction finance. He mentioned the simplification of complex procedures, a significant reduction in documentation requirement, development of a model to assess informal income, effective redressal mechanism as examples of this support. Communication initiatives like Mera Pakistan Mera Ghar Meri Kahani –a series of testimonials of MPMG beneficiaries have also been instrumental in encouraging others to apply.

    READ MORE: PM launches house financing scheme for NRPs

    Earlier, in a meeting of the National Coordination Committee on Housing, Construction, and Development (NCCHCD), Governor SBP apprised the Prime Minister on developments in housing and construction finance. He recalled that in July 2020, in line with the Government’s vision of boosting economic activity, SBP mandated banks to increase their housing and construction finance to at least 5 percent of their domestic private sector advances by December 31, 2021. Five banks have already achieved their December 2021 targets. The best performing banks in this regard were Albaraka Bank followed by Meezan Bank and Dubai Islamic Bank. He highlighted that as of December 17, 2021, banks have lent Rs. 321 billion which is Rs. 173 billion more than their financing as of June 30, 2020, reflecting a growth of 117 percent since June 2020. He praised Bank Al Habib, National Bank, and Bank Alfalah for a significant increase in their housing and construction finance portfolio since June 2020 till date.

    In conclusion, Governor Baqir expressed SBPs confidence that the banking industry will continue to pace up its performance rapidly to meet the objectives of Mera Pakistan Mera Ghar and to reach targets mandated for Housing and Construction Finance.

    READ MORE: Meezan Bank becomes pioneer in Sharia financing for low cost housing

    The MPMG event also witnessed speeches from Senator Shaukat Tareen, Adviser to Prime Minister on Finance & Revenue, and Lt Gen Anwar Ali Hyder, Chairman NAPHDA. The Finance Adviser reiterated the Government commitment to MPMG and assured banks to provide all needed support. Chairman NAPHA requested banks to demonstrate commitment in providing housing finance to individuals in NAPHDAs LDA City and Peri Urban projects.