ISLAMABAD: The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) served a notice to ARY Communications Limited and raised a tax demand of Rs992 million against the television channel.
The revenue board claims that the entity evaded tens of millions in taxes through misrepresentation, concealment and misuse of exemptions, thereby causing a substantial loss to the national exchequer.
The order follows a detailed exchange with ARY Communications in which the media house was unable to clear the accusations leveled against it by the FBR.
The FBR investigation states that a Dubai-based firm named ARY FZLLC undertook transactions with Pakistan-based ARY Communications and ARY Films and TV Productions under a business agreement.
The tripartite agreement was utilised to allow the three companies to settle their receivables and payables in Pakistan on behalf ARY FZLLC through an alleged fraudulent scheme.
The group tax assessment showed that the ARY group obtained exemptions by claiming to export locally-produced content to the offshore entity in order to evade local taxes.
However, the content was then subsequently bought from the same Dubai entity, ARY FZLLC, and then telecast in Pakistan. This allowed ARY to make transactions in billions without paying taxes on them.
