ISLAMABAD - The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has intensified its efforts to recover outstanding tax liabilities against various companies in order to meet challenging annual tax collection target of Rs 1,952 billion during outgoing financial year 2011-12.
“The FBR has adopted strict policy to recover outstanding tax liabilities against various companies, which will further intensify in next few days”, said an official of the FBR while talking to TheNation on Tuesday. He further informed that FBR would attach the bank accounts of the public and private departments, which are owing to the national exchequer in terms of taxes.
Official sources further informed that bank accounts of several companies had been attached so far in this regard. The FBR has to collect Rs 528 billion in remaining two months (May-June) to meet the challenging annual tax collection target of Rs 1,952 billion set for the outgoing financial year. Sources further informed that FBR is working to recover maximum of revenues from the non-taxpayers in last month of June of outgoing fiscal year.
In a latest development, Large Taxpayers Unit (LTU), Islamabad has attached all bank accounts of the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), which owed Rs.3.6 billion to the exchequer on account of Income Tax. The PTA was served with recovery notice under Section 138(10) of the Income Tax Ordinance 2001, to deposit outstanding liabilities by 28th of May 2012, which it failed to do so.
Accordingly, various teams were formed by Chief Commissioner, LTU, Islamabad to recover amount from PTA through attachment of bank accounts and its receivables from mobile operators, wireless local loop (WLL) operators, Long Distance & International (LDI) operators, land line (LL) operators and Ministry of Information Technology.
During last week, LTU Islamabad had attached bank accounts of Pakistan Mobile Communications’ (Mobilink) and blocked its imports to recover through suppliers of the company, which included other telecom companies as well. Consequent upon Mobilink’s decision to avail Tax Surcharge and Penalty Waiver Scheme by FBR, the LTU Islamabad has agreed to resolve the issue of recovery of outstanding tax dues amicably. Mobilink will pay revenue of Rs 2.5 billion by 30th May 2012 due to prompt recovery action by LTU, Islamabad.