ISLAMABAD: Member Inland Revenue and spokesman of Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) Shahid Hussain Asad has said that levy of withholding tax on banking transactions will help tighten noose around the neck of tax evaders and tax defaulters.
He said that the main objective of this tax is documentation and bring those people under tax net who are not filing returns willfully.
Talking to Customs Today, Shahid Hussain Asad said that banks are bound to generate statements of those customers who will pay withholding tax. He further said, “We are trying our best to resolve this issue with banks. In the first phase, we will catch big tax evaders and in the second phase we will tighten the rope around the neck of small tax evaders.”
Shahid Hussain Asad has said that nowadays people are investing in property market and we are also panning to focus on this particular market. We said that we have authentic reports that people are purchasing property by paying ten crore rupees but declaring its price as one crore rupee . These people, after purchasing the property avoid to make payments through banks.
Now we are planning to introduce reforms in banking sector through which we will collect details of payments which were made in millions, and were made through online, pay order, demand draft.
He said that after increase in investment in property sectors a decrease is also being witnessed in “Registery”. Shahid Hussain Asad said that tough measure against those persons, people will see decrease in prices of property also. He said no withholding tax is imposed on Azad Kashmir and Gilgit Baltistan, because these localities are following their own tax format. He said that sometimes we have to take hard decisions to take right path as this withholding tax will definitely put a positive import on our national economy, he complains that if these hard decisions were taken in the past Pakistan should have become economically strong. He said only enhancement of tax ratio is the key to strengthen Pakistan’s economy.
