ISLAMABAD: FBR has achieved another milestone in improving service delivery standards by launching Urdu versions of Income Tax Return for salaried individuals (wizard view), simplified single page Tax Return for small retailers and wealth statement.
This achievement has been made in compliance with the vision of the Prime Minister for provision of best facilities to the taxpayers and to implement the directions of Advisor to Prime Minister on Finance and Revenue Dr. Abdul Hafeez Shaikh, Urdu versions of the returns are available on Iris web portal.
In its efforts to improve tax systems and taxpayer facilitation standards, FBR will soon launch Urdu versions of other online Wizard based returns and mobile Tax Asaan app.
Meanwhile, Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has issued directions to all its field formations to resolve all the pending pension cases of employees. In the month of August, twenty pending pension cases of employees of RTO Sargodha have been indicated. Majority of these pension cases are pending with District Accounts office.
FBR has issued directions to Regional Tax Office, Sargodha to coordinate with the District Accounts Office for payment of pension benefits to the retired employees in case of delay beyond one month after retirement and complete the pending cases being processed in RTO by 30th September, 2020.
Similarly, FBR (HQ) has also directed RTO, Islamabad to coordinate with AGPR and resolve the pending pension cases of all employees retired from January to June, 2020. Moreover, RTO Islamabad has been directed to coordinate with the AGPR for payment of pension benefits to the retired employees.
Meanwhile, the Spokesperson of the FBR has tweeted that Pakistan Customs at Allama Iqbal International Airport Lahore has foiled an attempt to smuggle 6.2 kg of Ketamine to a foreign country. Ketamine is a restricted chemical used as psychotropic drug. Ketamine was concealed in decorated plastic pipes. Value of seized Ketamine is around Rs 2 million.
Meanwhile, the Federal Board of Revenue has extended the utilization period of input goods under export facilitation schemes up to 28th February, 2021 for all three schemes that are Manufacturing Bond, Export Oriented Units and Export Processing Zones. This measure shall ensure that the feared losses of these exporters due to Covid-19 Pandemic wherein orders were either cancelled or delayed shall be addressed.
Pakistan Customs (FBR) is committed to achieve the vision of Prime Minister for exporter’s facilitation and addressing their genuine hardships on a proactive basis at their doorsteps. Such steps shall boost exports and will result in trade facilitation by ensuring competitiveness of our exported goods in international markets.
Meanwhile, in a major breakthrough, the Directorate of Intelligence & Investigation Inland Revenue, Faisalabad has arrested yesterday Muhammad Yousaf, proprietor of M/s Saytex International, one of the major culprits running the racket of fake and flying invoices, causing huge loss of revenue to the national Exchequer. The Directorate had unearthed a big sales tax evasion scam of issuing/adjusting fake and flying invoices involving tax fraud of millions of rupees. Accordingly, prosecution proceedings against the members of the fraudsters’ gang were initiated and the First Information Report (FIR) was lodged against M/s Arrow International, its buyers, suppliers and other beneficiaries under section 37(a) of the Sales Tax Act 1990.
The person arrested had issued fake invoices worth 104.446 million to M/s Arrow International and thus defrauded payment of due taxes thereon. Mr. Imran Zafar, I.O/Deputy Director, who arrested the accused has obtained physical remand of the accused from the learned Special Judge (Customs, Taxation & Anti-Smuggling), Lahore. The accused is currently under further investigation.
It is pertinent to mention here that two other members of the fraudsters’ network, namely, Arshad Mehdi and Muhammad Danish Javed were also arrested few days earlier. Arshad Mehdi is the declared proprietor of dummy unit, M/s Arrow International, in whose name 05 bank accounts were opened in Faisalabad and Lahore through which transactions of Rs.288 million had been effected. Arshad Mehdi is currently in jail serving judicial remand.
The other person Muhammad Danish Javed, has been found to have deposited money in the bank accounts of dummy unit M/s Arrow International against whom an FIR has already been lodged for evasion of tax amounting to Rs.134.4 million. The said person is also in jail under judicial remand. Investigation from these arrested persons subsequently led the Intelligence and Investigation Directorate to identification of real culprits behind establishment and running of this network of tax fraudsters involving 65 units and total invoice value amounts to Rs.1.3 billion.
The arrest of Muhammad Yousaf, proprietor M/s Saytex International, Faisalabad is in continuation of Inland Revenue Intelligence’s tirade against tax fraudsters and networks of dubiously registered firms involved in fake and flying invoices. So far the Faisalabad Directorate has arrested 06 persons leading to recovery of defrauded amount of tax at Rs.6 million. Another 13 registered persons nominated in the FIR have voluntarily deposited their tax liability totaling Rs.2.2 million. Further investigations into the scam are underway and further arrests and recoveries are expected.