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Tag: FBR

FBR, Pakistan’s national tax collecting agency, plays a crucial role in the country’s economy. Pakistan Revenue is committed to providing readers with the latest updates and developments regarding FBR activities.

  • Persons committing fiscal fraud liable to 10 years jail under Customs laws

    Persons committing fiscal fraud liable to 10 years jail under Customs laws

    KARACHI: A person is liable to jail punishment up to 10 years in case of committing fiscal fraud under Customs Act, 1969.

    The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) recently updated Customs Act, 1969 under which if a person commits and offence of fiscal fraud under Section 32A of the Act then such person is liable to penalty and imprisonment.

    According to the Customs Act, 1969:

    If any person commits an offence under section 32A such person shall be liable to a penalty not exceeding three times the value of the goods in respect of which such offence is committed and such goods shall also be liable to confiscation and upon conviction by a Special Judge he shall further be liable to imprisonment for a term which may extend to ten years but shall not be less than five years or to fine, or to both.

    The act explained the fiscal fraud as:

    32A. Fiscal fraud.- (1) If any person, in connection with any matter related to customs-

    (a) causes to submit documents including those filed electronically, which are concocted, altered, mutilated, false, forged, tempered or counterfeit to a functionary of customs;

    (b) declares in the goods declaration electronically filed customs declaration, the name and address of any exporter or importer which is physically non-existent at the given address;

    (c) declares in the goods declaration electronically filed customs declaration, an untrue information regarding payment of duties and taxes through self-assessment, description, quantity, quality, origin and value of goods;
    (d) alters, mutilates or suppresses any finding of the customs functionary on any document or in the computerized record; or (e) attempts, abets or connives in any action mentioned in clauses (a), (b), (c) and (d) above, he shall be guilty of an offence under this section.

    (2) Where, by any reason as referred to in sub-section (1) as aforesaid, any duty or tax charged or fee or fine and penalty levied under any provision of law has not been levied or has been short levied or has been refunded, the person liable to pay any amount on that account shall be served with a notice within a period of 180 days of the date of detection of such custom duty and tax fraud, requiring him to show cause as to why he should not pay the amount specified in the notice along with any other amount imposed as fine or penalty under the provisions of this Act.

    (3) The appropriate Adjudicating Officer, after considering the written or verbal representation of such person, may determine the amount of duty or tax chargeable or fee payable by such person which shall in no case exceed the amount specified in the notice and such person shall pay the amount so determined besides the fine or penalty or both.

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  • FBR notifies adjudication benches for Benami cases

    FBR notifies adjudication benches for Benami cases

    The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has taken a decisive step in addressing Benami cases by establishing dedicated adjudication benches in three major cities across the country.

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  • FBR taking significant steps to improve tax administration: IMF

    FBR taking significant steps to improve tax administration: IMF

    ISLAMABAD: International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Friday said that Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) is undertaking significant steps to improve tax administration and its interface with taxpayers.

    An International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission, led by Ernesto Ramirez Rigo, visited Islamabad and Karachi during September 16–20, 2019 to take stock of economic developments since the start of the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) and discuss progress in the implementation of economic policies.

    A full mission for the first review under the EFF, is planned for late-October. At the conclusion of the staff visit, Ramirez Rigo issued the following statement:

    “While the authorities’ economic reform program is still in its early stages, there has been progress in some key areas. The transition to a market-determined exchange rate has started to deliver positive results on the external balance, exchange rate volatility has diminished, monetary policy is helping to control inflation, and the SBP has improved its foreign exchange buffers.

    “There has been a significant improvement in tax revenue collections, with taxes showing double-digit growth net of exporters refunds. Moreover, the FBR is undertaking significant steps to improve tax administration and its interface with taxpayers. Staff and the authorities have analyzed the worse than expected fiscal results of FY2018/19, which were partially the result of one-off factors and should not jeopardize the ambitious fiscal targets for FY2019/20. Importantly, the social spending measures in the program have been implemented.

    “The near-term macroeconomic outlook is broadly unchanged from the time of the program approval, with growth projected at 2.4 percent in FY2019/20, inflation expected to decline in the coming months, and the current account adjusting more rapidly than anticipated. However, domestic and international risks remain, and structural economic challenges persist. In this context, the authorities need to press ahead with their reform agenda.

    “In order to complete the first review, an IMF staff team plans to return to Pakistan in late-October to assess the end-September program targets.”

  • Sales tax registration made mandatory for buyers of ginned cotton

    Sales tax registration made mandatory for buyers of ginned cotton

    ISLAMABAD: Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has made sales tax registration mandatory for persons buying ginned cotton.

    The FBR issued SRO 1087(I)/2019 and said that the person receiving ginned cotton shall pay sales tax and shall discharged the liability in the following manner:

    (a) the recipient of the supply of ginned cotton shall be duly registered under the Sales Tax Act, 1990, and the ginner shall not make any supply of ginned cotton to any person who is not so registered;

    (b) the ginner shall issue a tax invoice on the supply of taxable goods under Section 23 of the Sales Tax Act, 1990 indicating the value of taxable supply and the amount of tax due on such supply, along with other particulars as prescribed therein. The ginner shall also file the monthly return in accordance with the rules prescribed under the Act;

    (c) the tax invoice shall be issued of the date on which the ginned cotton was dispatched;

    (d) the recipient of ginned cotton shall deposit the tax due thereon under a payment challan indicating the name and registration number of supplier, along with the return for tax period in which invoice is issued for the relevant supply;

    (e) if the recipient fails to deposit sales tax payable on ginned cotton purchased by him by the due date for the relevant tax period, besides any other action which may be taken against him under the said Act, he shall not be entitled to claim adjustment or refund of input tax in respect of such purchase unless he pays the amount of additional tax or penalties chargeable on such late deposit under Section 33 and 34 of the said Act;

    (f) in case the ginner fails to declare the supply of ginned cotton in his return and same is detected during the course of an audit or otherwise, the amount due on such supply shall be recoverable from the ginner in accordance with the provisions of the said Act and the rules made thereunder;

    (g) the cases involving non-payment or short-payment of sales tax by a ginner or a recipient on supplies of ginned cotton made under the provisions of this notification shall be adjudicated by the officer having jurisdiction in the area where the contravention is made; and

    (h) in case a ginner deposits the tax due on the supply of ginned cotton, the same shall absolve the recipient from liability to pay tax on such supply under this notification.

  • FBR issues 60,000 notices to Faisalabad industrial, commercial electricity consumers

    FBR issues 60,000 notices to Faisalabad industrial, commercial electricity consumers

    ISLAMABAD: Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has issued 60,000 notices to commercial and industrial electricity consumers for mandatory registration and filing of income tax returns.

    Syed Shabbar Zaidi in a tweet on Wednesday said that over 60,000 notices to non-registered / non-compliant persons were being jointly sent by FBR and Faisalabad Electric Supply Company (FESCO) to industrial and commercial consumers in Faisalabad.

    “Strict actions will be taken against delinquents. Such action will be replicated around the country.”

    Under the Income Tax Ordinance 2001, an industrial / commercial consumer of gas or electricity paying above Rs500,000 for single connection is mandatorily required to file income tax returns.

    Recently, the chairman wrote letters to power and gas utilities for refusing new applications for commercial / industrial connections until the individuals appear on the active taxpayers list.

  • FBR sets up information booth at ITCN Asia

    FBR sets up information booth at ITCN Asia

    KARACHI: Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has setup an informative booth for ease of doing business at ITCN Asia Expo 2019 to be continued September 17-19 at Karachi Expo Center.

    The setting up of the informative booth is aimed at enlightening the industry players, youth and the other stakeholders about the role FBR is playing in Ease of Doing Business in Pakistan and other facilitative measures being taken for the taxpayers, traders and investors.

    The team of FBR is led by Mustafa Sajjad Hassan, Member Facilitation & Taxpayers Education (FATE) who is assisted by Ms. Tehmina Aamer, Chief (FATE) and Field officials of RTO, Karachi.

    The event has provided an opportunity to not only comprehend the challenges and concerns faced by industrialists and business community but also to enlighten them about the new initiatives taken by FBR to reduce the hurdles of doing business.

    Through this platform, FBR aims to create awareness about the simplification of filing process, alternative modes of tax payment with ease, automation of sales tax registration and sales tax refund system besides other facilitative measure taken by FBR.

    The setting up of information booth will also help to get valuable feedback of industry leaders, businesses and most importantly the youth that is shaping the future narrative transforming business and industry outlook in the region.

  • Salary persons can file returns in easy steps by using mobile app

    Salary persons can file returns in easy steps by using mobile app

    ISLAMABAD: In a significant step towards enhancing accessibility and ease of tax compliance, the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has officially launched a mobile application tailored for salaried individuals to file their income tax returns for the tax year 2019.

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  • FBR applies standard measurement units for customs clearance

    FBR applies standard measurement units for customs clearance

    ISLAMABAD: Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has applied standard units of measurements (UoM) for customs clearance of consignments.

    The FBR issued Customs General Order (CGO) No. 15/ 2019 on Monday and directed all field formations of Customs to adopt standard units of quantity/measurement.

    The FBR said that the units of measurement have been revisited in terms of recommendations of the World Customs Organization (WCO) and international / national trading practices to maintain uniformity; improve collection, comparison and analysis of trade statistics and facilitate trade, based on the Harmonized System.

    The standard units of quantity were previously notified by the FBR on August 06, 2012. Due to adoption of HS-2017 version Pakistan Customs Tariff (PCT) codes have been created. Accordingly an updated CGO has been prepared to accommodate these changes.

    The standard units of quantity are:

    Weight – kilograms (kg), carat (carat)

    Length – meters (m)

    Area – square meters (m2)

    Volume – cubic meters (m3), liters (l)

    Electric power – 1,000 kilowatts hours (1,000 kWh)

    Numbers – pieces/items (u), pairs (2u), dozen (12), thousands of pieces / items (1,000 u), packs (u (jeu/pack)).

    The FBR applied these units of measurements on 7,354 PCT codes.

  • FBR bars tax officials from entering taxpayers premises for search, audit

    FBR bars tax officials from entering taxpayers premises for search, audit

    ISLAMABAD: Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has barred officers of Inland Revenue from entering premises of taxpayers for search and audit purposes.

    The FBR issued a notification on Monday and restricted IR officers for invoking Section 175(1) of Income Tax Ordinance, 2001.

    The FBR received numerous complaints of taxpayers that tax officials were abusing powers available under this section.

    The IR officers were allowed under this section to enter and search premises.—

    (1) In order to enforce any provision of this Ordinance (including for the purpose of making an audit of a taxpayer or a survey of persons liable to tax), the Commissioner or any officer authorised in writing by the Commissioner for the purposes of this section –

    (a) shall, at all times and without prior notice, have full and free access to any premises, place, accounts, documents or computer;

    (b) may stamp, or make an extract or copy of any accounts, documents or computer-stored information to which access is obtained under clause (a);

    (c) may impound any accounts or documents and retain them for so long as may be necessary for examination or for the purposes of prosecution;

    (d) may, where a hard copy or computer disk of information stored on a computer is not made available, impound and retain the computer for as long as is necessary to copy the information
    required; and

    (e) may make an inventory of any articles found in any premises or place to which access is obtained under clause (a).

    The FBR said that in exceptional cases the section may be invoked but with the prior permission of the chief commissioner of Inland Revenue.

  • Traders criticizes FBR for early implementation of CNIC condition

    Traders criticizes FBR for early implementation of CNIC condition

    KARACHI: Traders have strongly criticized Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) for applying condition of Computerized National Identity Card (CNIC) for sales tax invoices much before its promised date of September 30, 2019.

    Javed Shams, President, Anjuman e Tajiran, Sindh, Karachi Division urged the FBR to allow sales tax transactions without the condition of CNIC till September 30, 2019.

    He said that in a meeting on August 07, 2019 with FBR chairman Shabbar Zaidi it was agreed that retailers would not asked for CNIC from its customers. Besides it was also agreed that company and distributors would also not demand for CNIC from their customers.

    Javed Shams further said that it was agreed that the transactions would not be documented till FBR and traders associations were not reached on an agreement. Instead the FBR portal is not accepting sales tax return for the month of August 2019 without CNIC.

    He urged the FBR to withdraw the condition till September 30, 2019 and allow taxpayers to file their returns for the month of August without condition of CNIC.

    He said that such steps of the FBR would not augur well for the economy.