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Debt servicing & Defence eat up all revenue: Federal Board of Revenue
Chairman Federal Board of Revenue Salman Siddique has said that the tax department’s whole revenue collections go to debt servicing or defence expenditures.
“The revenue shortfall compelled the country to go for IMF programme as out of total Rs1,558 billion revenue collected by the FBR, Rs750 billion used for debt servicing and Rs441 billion go to defence while one per cent money is retained by the FBR from tax collection,” he maintained.
The chairman assured the business community that all the major issues are going to be resolved with due consultation of business community. He was speaking at the Lahore Chamber of Commerce & Industry here Saturday.
He said after the passage of National Finance Commission award, 60 per cent revenue directly goes to provinces that left the government with no other option except borrowing, he maintained.
The FBR Chairman said that a new tariff regime is being designed to curb smuggling and would be in place in three months’ time. Over misuse of Afghan Transit Trade, he disclosed that over a period of two and half years, 35,0000 containers entered Pakistani territory out of which 29,000 could not reach the destination and their cases are to be adjudicated.
He said all policies were made in better interest of stakeholders, but after implementation some anomalies had been witnessed and the Board was trying to remove them. He indicated after restructuring the FBR, all regional chiefs were now competent enough to resolve day-to-day issues on their own.
They had been directed to constitute committees in collaboration with chambers, trade bodies and other stakeholders to sort out pressing issue on priority. He also asked the LCCI to forward its nominations for these committees. He revealed that the FBR was also formulating its core policy that would be finalised by the end of next month.
He said it was a routine practice that FBR started receiving budget proposals in March. However, this year the FBR had initiated this process by these meetings and it would be completed till March.
He said with the help of NADRA and 19 other sources as many as 120,000 new assessees have been identified and they have been served notices. Out of these, 22,000 have filed their income tax returns.
The LCCI President Irfan Qaiser Sheikh, Vice President Saeeda Nazar, former LCCI presidents Mian Anjum Nisar, Iftikhar Ali Malik, Mian Misbah-ur-Rehman, Sheikh Mohammad Asif, Mohammad Ali Mian, former president of Karachi Chamber Qaiser Ahmad Sheikh, former LCCI Senior Vice President Sheikh Mohammad Arshad, Tahir Javed Malik, former Vice Presidents Sikandar M. Khan, Aftab Ahmad Vohra, Shafqat Saeed Piracha former FBR Chairman Abdullah Yousaf and LCCI EC members also spoke on the occasion.
In his welcome address, Irfan Qaiser Sheikh said that the business community was in favour of expansion in tax net but it rejects any move that aims to tax the already taxed. The businessmen want all incomes should be taxed whether derived from manufacturing, trade, services or agriculture.
The LCCI President said that though it is a wise step that the SRO 821 has been suspended for 2 months but the business community wants of the FBR to withdraw this SRO.
Debt servicing, defence eat up all revenue | Pakistan | News | Newspaper | Daily | English | Online
Chairman Federal Board of Revenue Salman Siddique has said that the tax department’s whole revenue collections go to debt servicing or defence expenditures.
“The revenue shortfall compelled the country to go for IMF programme as out of total Rs1,558 billion revenue collected by the FBR, Rs750 billion used for debt servicing and Rs441 billion go to defence while one per cent money is retained by the FBR from tax collection,” he maintained.
The chairman assured the business community that all the major issues are going to be resolved with due consultation of business community. He was speaking at the Lahore Chamber of Commerce & Industry here Saturday.
He said after the passage of National Finance Commission award, 60 per cent revenue directly goes to provinces that left the government with no other option except borrowing, he maintained.
The FBR Chairman said that a new tariff regime is being designed to curb smuggling and would be in place in three months’ time. Over misuse of Afghan Transit Trade, he disclosed that over a period of two and half years, 35,0000 containers entered Pakistani territory out of which 29,000 could not reach the destination and their cases are to be adjudicated.
He said all policies were made in better interest of stakeholders, but after implementation some anomalies had been witnessed and the Board was trying to remove them. He indicated after restructuring the FBR, all regional chiefs were now competent enough to resolve day-to-day issues on their own.
They had been directed to constitute committees in collaboration with chambers, trade bodies and other stakeholders to sort out pressing issue on priority. He also asked the LCCI to forward its nominations for these committees. He revealed that the FBR was also formulating its core policy that would be finalised by the end of next month.
He said it was a routine practice that FBR started receiving budget proposals in March. However, this year the FBR had initiated this process by these meetings and it would be completed till March.
He said with the help of NADRA and 19 other sources as many as 120,000 new assessees have been identified and they have been served notices. Out of these, 22,000 have filed their income tax returns.
The LCCI President Irfan Qaiser Sheikh, Vice President Saeeda Nazar, former LCCI presidents Mian Anjum Nisar, Iftikhar Ali Malik, Mian Misbah-ur-Rehman, Sheikh Mohammad Asif, Mohammad Ali Mian, former president of Karachi Chamber Qaiser Ahmad Sheikh, former LCCI Senior Vice President Sheikh Mohammad Arshad, Tahir Javed Malik, former Vice Presidents Sikandar M. Khan, Aftab Ahmad Vohra, Shafqat Saeed Piracha former FBR Chairman Abdullah Yousaf and LCCI EC members also spoke on the occasion.
In his welcome address, Irfan Qaiser Sheikh said that the business community was in favour of expansion in tax net but it rejects any move that aims to tax the already taxed. The businessmen want all incomes should be taxed whether derived from manufacturing, trade, services or agriculture.
The LCCI President said that though it is a wise step that the SRO 821 has been suspended for 2 months but the business community wants of the FBR to withdraw this SRO.
Debt servicing, defence eat up all revenue | Pakistan | News | Newspaper | Daily | English | Online
