Tax shortfall prompts excise to step up recovery
At high tax rates, profit margins for sellers decrease, leaving them with options to pass on the burden to consumers, compromise on the quality of products, evade taxes or find cheaper illicit goods. photo: file
The Excise, Taxation and Narcotics Control Department has intensified its commercial and domestic property tax recovery campaign in the Rawalpindi zone following a 55 per cent shortfall in property, professional, and luxury tax collections.
In a move to accelerate collections, the secretary of excise and taxation has imposed an immediate ban on transfers and leave for excise inspectors and field staff until June 30.
Property tax offices will also remain open on weekends throughout the month of June. The director general of excise and taxation has issued strict directives to ensure all tax targets are met by the end of June.
Property tax collections in Rawalpindi, Attock, Chakwal, and Jhelum districts are reportedly 5054 per cent below targets, while the newly designated tourist district of Murree, known as Malika Kohsar, has recorded a shortfall of up to 60 per cent.
In response, the department has launched a large-scale operation, sealing 126 defaulting property units and recovering a total of Rs2.89 million in outstanding taxes.
Seven excise and taxation officers in the Rawalpindi Zone have been served show-cause notices under the Punjab Employees Efficiency, Discipline and Accountability (PEEDA) Act for failing to meet recovery targets and may face dismissal.