The National Committee of Finance of the Assembly Assembly ordered the Federal Income Board (FBR) on Thursday to incorporate safeguards before closing bank accounts of unregistered companies, in the midst of generalized tax evasion and sub -registration of businessmen. The committee, which met here with its president Syed Naveed Qamar in the President, reviewed the measures proposed by the FBR to enforce compliance with sales tax, including the disconnection of public services and temporary freezing of bank accounts for non -filters. During the meeting, FBR president, Rashid Mahmood Langial, gave an informative session to the committee. He said that unregistered businessmen could not operate a bank account under sales tax laws, adding that said person would receive a notice before the closing of the bank account.
"The bank account of an unregistered person will be reactivated within two days after registration," said. He revealed that from 300,000 industrial units in Pakistan, only 30,000 to 35,000 were registered with the authorities. Explaining reasons, he acknowledged that the tax rate in Pakistan was high.
"A third of manufacturers are not registered in the sales tax. People who are even under the fiscal network do not present presentation returns," Langarial said. "Those who pay taxes do not inform their income," He told the committee. "The theft of electricity only costs RS500 to 600 billion every year."
When asked how the FBR would identify companies that do not pay the sales tax, the president of FBR explained that the income declared for the purposes of Income Tax would be used to estimate the volume of sales, supplies and general commercial activity. Then measures would be taken against people who are not registered, he added. The member of the Javed Hanif committee supported the proposals of the FBR, but the president of the Committee warned against the promulgation of a law aimed at capturing tax evaders if it also negatively affects compatible companies. Another member of the committee, Sharmila Farooqi, suggested that, instead of making the sanctions stricter, taxpayers should receive incentives. "Reduce the tax rate. Will expand the fiscal network and encourage people to register them. The Minister of Finance, Muhammad Aurengzeb, replied that the threshold and tax process would improve. However, he made it clear that tax exemptions and amnesties would no longer be given. "Time has passed for tax exemptions and amnesties. People must be taken to the fiscal network."
Langial urged the committee to allow the FBR to temporarily deactivate the bank account of unregistered entrepreneurs. However, the Committee directed to include safeguards in the process. Meanwhile, the Committee approved a proposal to increase the rate of oil development development rate (PDL) to RS90 and impose carbon tax on gasoline, diesel and oven oil. Officials of the Ministry of Finance told the committee that there was also a proposal to impose the PDL on the oven oil. The officials said that RS100 billion were expected in PDL revenues on oven oil. They added that 1.2 million tons of oven oil for independent energy producers (IPP) of 1,000MW were imported. The secretary of the Ministry of Energy said that the objective of recovery of PDL in fiscal year 2025-26 was established at RS1,468 billion. The officials of the Ministry of Finance said the government expected income from RS45 billion through the carbon tax. The president of the committee asked how much the center would obtain if the tax became a carbon tax. On that, the officials said that the amount in that case would be RS18 billion. The committee was informed that the total amount of a tax was for the federal government, but in taxes, the provinces also obtain participation. The president emphasized that the committee was not making any decision regarding a tax or tax on oil products. The secretary of the industries told the Committee that RS10 billion Carbon Levy would spend on the promotion of electric vehicles. He added that 30% of the vehicles would be transferred to electric vehicles by 2030. The production of all types of vehicles in the country is around 150,000, the officials said, and added that there were 76,000 electric vehicles in the country today. "In the next five years, the production of electric vehicles will increase to 2.2 million," The secretary said.
