ISLAMABAD: Finance Minister Ishaq Dar visited the FBR Headquarters and presided over a ceremony which was held to pay sales tax refunds.
The minister, in his budget speech, had announced that the sales tax refunds claims, issued up to April 30, 2017, will be paid in two stages. At the first stage, the refund payment orders (RPOs) involving the amounts up to Rs 1 million would be paid by July 15, 2017 and the refunds of more than Rs 1 million would be paid by August 14, 2017 at the second stage.
In his opening remarks, the finance minister congratulated Tariq Mehmood Pasha for assuming the office of the FBR chairman and expressed the hope that his team would overcome all challenges and would achieve the targets for the current financial year.
The finance minister stated that the government was conscious of the problems being faced by the taxpayers and is taking many steps to resolve these problems. He stated that the ceremony was part of such measures and through this first part of the commitment made in the budget speech is being fulfilled. The payment is being paid against 6853 RPOs issued by 30th April 2017, of amount up to Rs1 million. The next part of commitment shall also be fulfilled by making payment against RPOs with amount more than Rs 1 million by 14th August 2017.
The finance minister informed that for the first time refund payments were made through direct electronic transfer to claimants’ bank accounts through State Bank in November 2016. The payments made in the ceremony will also be transferred in the same manner to the claimants’ accounts in the next two working days. This measure, he said, is aimed at enhancing transparency and facilitation and reducing contact between tax collectors and the taxpayers.
In the concluding part of the ceremony, the finance minister pressed the button of FBR’s computerized system to remit the bank advice to the State Bank for transfer of the amount involved.
