ISLAMABAD - Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has collected Rs300 billion in the first month (July) of the fiscal year of 2020-21.
The FBR has released the revenue collection information of first month of current financial year, July 2020. According to the released information, against the assigned revenue target of Rs.243 billion, FBR has collected Rs.300 billion overshooting the target by a staggering Rs.57 billion, which is 125 percent of the assigned revenue target. The Inland Revenue overshot the target by Rs. 52 billion, whereas the Customs Wing exceeded the target by Rs.5 billion despite 25 billion relief given in Customs duty.
It is worth mentioning here that the net collection of Inland Revenue in July 2019 had remained Rs.236 billion.
To redress the hardships of the business community caused by Covid-19, an unprecedented amount of refunds to the tune of Rs.15 billion has been disbursed during July 2020, as compared to the refunds of Rs.7 billion during July 2019. Sales Tax refunds are being issued under centralized and automated system called FASTER which is clearing refunds to exporters within 72 hours for the first time as committed by the Government in July, 2020. This has facilitated the exporters and the industry easing off their liquidity crunch.
According to the official figures, total customs duty collected during July, 2020 is over Rs. 42 billion which is 6 percent higher than that collected in the same period of July, 2019. This is despite the fact that there is less than 1 percent growth in import values during this period.
The higher growth in FBR revenues is primarily on account of better supervision and improved administrative controls despite economic conditions caused by Covid-19 during which the country mostly remained in lockdown state. The revenue trajectory also beat the adverse impact of governments’ import compression policy.
The FBR is also engaging with trade and industry to mitigate their genuine grievances. FBR is proactively reaching out to trade and industry and resolving their issues. It has also launched an unprecedented crackdown on corruption dismissing and suspending about a dozen officers and officials only during the month of July 2020.
In other development, the FBR said that Pakistan Customs is making allout efforts to protect the economic frontiers of Pakistan and protect local industry. In line with the vision of Prime Minister of Pakistan, Customs under the leadership and in coordination of Law Enforcement Agencies i.e. Police, Frontier Corps, Pakistan Rangers & Maritime Security Agency has launched a country-wide operation against transportation, storage and sale of smuggled goods.
Raids are being conducted on dumping places used for storage of smuggled items and intelligence based operations are being conducted in all major cities including Quetta, Peshawar, Karachi, Lahore and Multan to root out the network of smugglers.
As a result of these coordinated efforts and renewed vigour, the Pakistan Customs has made historic seizures of smuggled goods during the month of July 2020 including gutka, betel nuts, skimmed milk, cigarettes, Iranian diesel, tyres, non-duty paid vehicles, narcotics, cloth, gold and foreign currency amounting to Rs.3800 million. This is 143 percent increase in the value of seized goods as compared to the seizures amounting to Rs.1560 million made during July 2019.
Pakistan Customs will continue this momentum against smuggling mafias with the assistance of all Law Enforcement Agencies to protect local industry and economic interests of the country