ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly has approved the law for imposition of harsh fine and penalties upon manufacturers and retailers for obstructing tax authorities in monitoring business activities.
The National Assembly passed the Tax Laws (Second Amendment) Ordinance, 2019 which was promulgated through presidential ordinance in December 2019.
After passage it shall be called the Tax Laws (Amendment) Act, 2020. The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) issued the copy of the Act, which amended Section 33 of the Sales Tax Act, 1990, under which any person, who is integrated for monitoring, tracking, reporting or recording of sales, production and similar business transactions with the board or its computerized system, conducts such transactions in a manner so as to avoid monitoring, tracking, reporting or recording of such transactions, or issues an invoice which does not carry the prescribed invoice number or barcode number or barcode or bears duplicate invoice number or counterfeit barcode, or any person who abets commissioning of such offence.
In such cases, the person shall pay a penalty of five hindered thousand rupees or two hundred percent of the amount of tax involved, whichever is higher. The person shall be liable, upon conviction by a special judge, to simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to two years, or with additional fine which may extend to two million rupees, or with both.
Further any person who abets commissioning of such offence, shall be liable, upon conviction by a special judge, to simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to one year, or with additional fine which may extend to two hundred thousand rupees, or with both.
Another amendment made as any person who is required to integrate his business for monitoring, tracking, reporting or recording of sales, production and similar business transactions with the board or its computerized system, fails to get himself registered under the Act, and if registered, fails to integrate in the manner as required under law.
Such person shall be liable to pay a penalty up to one million rupees, and if continues to commit the same offence after a period of six months after imposition of .penalty as aforesaid, his business premises shall be sealed and an embargo shall be placed on his sales.
Any person, being a manufacturer or importer of an item which is subject to tax on the basis of retail price, who fails to print the retail price in the manner as stipulated under the Act.
Such person shall pay a penalty of ten thousand rupees or five per cent of the amount of tax involved, whichever is higher:
Further, such goods shall also be liable to confiscation.
However, the adjudication authority, after such confiscation, may allow redemption of such goods on payment of fine which shall not be less than twenty percent of the total retail price of such goods.
