FBR allows refund of excess duty

ISLAMABAD: The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has allowed the Customs Department to refund federal and central excise duty which had wrongfully been collected from importers of goods.

In this connection, the FBR has issued a circular which says that registered taxpayers will have to file refund claims for recovering the excess federal and central excise duty.

The taxpayers will also have to get their applications verified from the collector, the Large Taxpayer Unit (LTU) and the Regional Tax Office (RTO) that they have not claimed input tax adjustment of the amount claimed in refunds.

According to Sales Tax General Order, issued on January 27 this year, the taxpayers will submit a copy of the refund claims with the LTU and the RTO, a condition meant to check payment of double refunds.

The circular said the collector, before processing the refund claim, will approach the RTO to find out whether the taxpayer has got input tax adjustment of the claimed amount. The RTO will have 30 days to respond to the collector’s request. In case the taxpayer was found to have claimed input tax adjustment, his duty refund claim will be rejected.

Published in the Express Tribune, June 3^rd, 2010.