Punjab finance minister lauds online tax facility

Makhdoom Hashim Jawan Bakht says govt is striving to uplift business environment

LAHORE: The Punjab government has been striving since it came in power to uplift the business environement and facilitate businessmen who are a crucial part of the economy, said Provincial Minister for Finance Makhdoom Hashim Jawan Bakht.

Addressing the business community on Wednesday, at the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI), he lauded the newly-introduced online tax paying facility, saying, “With the implementation of this initiative, taxpayers will no longer need to visit banks and stand in long queues to deposit taxes.”

“Thus the compliance cost of the taxpayers will reduce,” he added.

Bakht notified that the government intends to expand the facility so that it comprises all provincial taxes.

For now, the Punjab Revenue Authority has taken the lead in this regard, he remarked, adding that the payment of sales tax on services through alternate delivery channels would be available by the end of December. “Subsequently, the facility will be enhanced to cover taxes collected by the Excise and Taxation Department and the board of revenue,” he shared.

Also speaking on the occasion, FPCCI Vice President and Regional Chairman Arfan Yousaf termed the trade deficit ‘heart of external sector problems’ and lamented that it is steering the country towards another IMF bailout. “This issue can only be addressed if competitiveness of the export sector is focused,” he added.

He noted that the rupee’s artificial stabilisation and its deviation from its true value during the last five years resulted in mounting pressure on the local unit.

Delay in reforming the power sector and selling public sector entities has resulted in a colossal deficit, which should be tackled, Yousaf added.

“Agriculture is no more the largest sector of the economy but it still continues to provide employment to majority of the labour.”

Published in The Express Tribune, December 20^th, 2018.

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