ISLAMABAD: Chief Commissioner Sajjad Haider Khan has said that all eligible citizens should pay tax honestly as it is a national obligation and the Federal Board of Revenues (FBR) would resolve genuine tax issues of business community to facilitate them in tax payment matters.
During his visit to the Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI), the chief commissioner said that the FBR preferred to receive taxes with friendly approach instead of adopting coercive measures, said a press statement issued by the ICCI.
Sajjad Haider said that the department is making efforts for broadening tax base instead of burdening existing taxpayers with additional taxes and business community should cooperate with it in such efforts.
He said soon a Tax Advisory Committee would be formed to settle tax issues of taxpayers in amicable manner. He maintained that there are many wedding halls in Islamabad but only 15 are paying taxes. He urged the ICCI to cooperate with tax department in its efforts to curb tax evasion by genuine taxpayers.
The chief commissioner said that the process of tax refunds is being streamlined, adding, the Islamabad RTO wants to address tax issues of business community with consultation which produced better results. He said that he believes in open door policy and if any taxpayer has any genuine problem, one should visit his office without any hesitation.
Speaking at the occasion, ICCI President Khalid Iqbal Malik said that millions of rupees of taxpayers are stuck up in refunds due to which they are facing liquidity problems and urged the FBR to ensure timely tax refunds.
He said that the FBR had extended last date for filing of income tax returns up to November 30 which was encouraging. However, he stressed that last date should be further extended up to December 31, 2016 to facilitate maximum taxpayers in discharging their tax obligations.
He said that the Chief Commissioner should play role in reducing gap between taxpayers and tax department. He claimed that web portal of the FBR also complicated and very difficult to understand for a common taxpayer. He emphasised that FBR should take measures to remove all problems and simplify it that would help improve tax revenue.
He said putting more tax burden on existing taxpayers is not a wise approach and FBR should focus on broadening the tax base. He said if the Islamabad RTO has tax related complaint against any taxpayer in the region, the ICCI should be taken on board in such matters so that issues could be settled in an amicable manner.
ICCI Senior Vice President Khalid Malik, Vice President Tahir Ayub, office-bearers Khalid Javed, Tariq Sadiq, Zafar Bakhtawari, Naeem Siddiqui, Khalid Chaudhry and others also highlighted various tax issues for the attention of Chief Commissioner RTO, Islamabad.
