ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tax Bar Association (PTBA) has demanded the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to extend the last date for taxpayers’ profile update at least for 90 days as system glitches creating hurdles in making compliance.
The PTBA on Monday sent a letter to FBR chairman Muhammad Javed Ghani highlighting issues related to updating the profiles of the taxpayers up till December 31, 2020 in compliance of the provisions of Section 114A of the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001 inserted through Finance Act, 2020.
The Section has made it compulsory for the taxpayers to update their profile electronically containing various information such as bank account, utilities etc. Furthermore, failure to file the prescribed form will also trigger the penal provisions as well as exclusion of the taxpayers from ATL list.
The PTBA highlighted that there are several issues which needs to be addressed in this cumbersome and time consuming process of updating profile of around 2.5 million taxpayers across the country.
The apex tax bar pointed out that the in the prescribed format for updating profile, the date can be put into it but there is no option for submission or is it just need to be entered into the said form? Hence, needs clarification in this regard.
“Whether the salaried individuals are also required to update their profile as there is no provision under Section 114A of the Ordinance, ibid requiring them to do so? Furthermore, the persons applying for registrations under section 181 are also required update their profiles. Will the same apply for the salaried individuals apply for registration under Section 181?”
The PTBA also pointed out that the tab/icon for the profile update is also appearing in the portals of the e-intermediary however, it does not work to update the profiles of the taxpayers appearing the portal of such e-intermediaries. The said issue needs to be rectified as most of the taxpayers rely on their representatives to do the e-filing work in this regard.
The necessary amendments needs to be made into IRIS system to allow the taxpayers to update their profile at the time of registration as the said updating is time consuming, cumbersome process as well as duplication of the information put through form 181.
Keeping in view the glitches, shortfall, issues the member has been requested to issue directions to the concerned IT department in order to do the needful in this regard as early as possible.
Furthermore, till such time these issues are resolved by the relevant IT department, the time line for updating the profile under the provisions of the Section 114A of the Ordinance, ibid may kindly be extended for further reasonable time (preferably 90 days).
