ISLAMABAD: Sheikh Amir Waheed, President, Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry has urged the Federal Board of Revenue to stop harassing builders and developers because such tactics would discourage investment in the real estate sector and hurt the economic growth of the country. He said on the pretext of expanding tax net, FBR has started issuing notices to builders and developers for providing details of buyers of shops and flats in the construction projects which was not a wise approach as it was creating harassment in the business community of real estate sector.
He said that after the agriculture, construction industry was the second largest jobs providing industry in the country and the growth of over 100 other ancillary industries was directly linked with the growth of construction industry. He said many countries in the world were providing good incentives to the real estate and construction industry in order to give boost to economic activities, but in Pakistan, tax machinery was taking measures to create more difficulties for this industry. He said all the details were provided to FBR at the time of transfer of property while the builders and developers were paying gain tax and advance tax on the lease and registration of property.
Sheikh Amir Waheed said that seeking the details of property buyers from builders and developers was tantamount to a conspiracy against the construction industry. He said due to such measures of FBR, investment in construction projects would be discouraged and would be confined to just buying and selling activities in real estate sector that would push the construction industry to the verge of collapse. He said the builders and developers were already mentally upset due to the current valuation methods of property and policies of FBR while such tactics of FBR would force them to withdraw investment from real estate sector and transfer capital out of the country that would not be in the interests of the economy.
Muhammad Naveed Senior Vice President and Nisar Mirza Vice President ICCI said that foreign investors wanted to invest in Pakistan, but unfair taxation system and measures of FBR against the investors were acting as a discouraging factors for local and foreign investment in Pakistan. They said that the future of many industries was associated with the real estate and construction industry and urged that FBR should stop issuing notices to builders and developers to save the economy from further damages.
