Filing of tax returns: FBR to pressurise corporate sector

Only 18,098 of 44,794 registered corporate taxpayers filed their returns for fiscal 2010.

ISLAMABAD: The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has decided to pressurise top 1,000 corporate non-filers and top 1,000 corporate short-filers of sales tax to file their returns for the period July to December 2010.

This was decided in a meeting of the FBR’s Board-in-Council, convened under the directive of Finance Minister Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh. The meeting, chaired by FBR Chairman Salman Siddique, discussed various proposals and options to boost revenue generation and meet the collection target for the ongoing year.

The board decided to seek compliance from the corporate sector, where only 18,098 of 44,794 registered taxpayers filed their returns for fiscal 2010. A similar compliance would be ensured in the case of Association of Persons (AoPs), where only 34,155 out of 135,292 AoPs have filed their returns. The drive is expected to be completed by May 30.

It was also decided that FBR will start monitoring airline ticketing agents and banks, while also utilising and cross-checking data available with the board for broadening of the tax base.

The board also plans to streamline and rationalise tariff on major items of the Afghan transit trade in view of increased incidences of transit trade items like tea and tyres finding their way back into the Pakistani market and causing a huge loss in revenue.

Publsihed in The Express Tribune, February 24^th, 2011.