FTO report containing 94pc disposal of cases presented to President Alvi

ISLAMABAD: The Federal Tax Ombudsman (FTO) processed 8,963 cases, implementing 94.07% of them in 2023, up from 73.29% in the previous year, addressing taxpayer grievances.

Furthermore, requests for refund claims were also decided to the tune of Rs.17,742.16m in 2023 and the due amount was paid to the aggrieved taxpayers by the FBR. This was highlighted by the Federal Tax Ombudsman, Asif Mahmood Jah, who called on President Dr Arif Alvi and presented FTO’s Annual Report for 2023 at Aiwan-e-Sadr on Wednesday.

Appreciating the performance of FTO, Dr Arif Alvi said that FTO had done an excellent job by processing a record number of cases and providing refunds worth Rs Rs 17,742.16m to taxpayers.

He remarked that the FTO needed to be strengthened as it was providing free-of-cost service delivery to aggrieved taxpayers.

The President called for using the latest technology for seamless service delivery and timely disposal of taxpayers’ complaints to improve the tax regime. He said that FTO had effectively contributed to promoting good governance in the country.

The Federal Tax Ombudsman briefed the President about FTO’s overall performance and its key initiatives to facilitate taxpayers. He stated that concerted efforts were undertaken to enhance FTO’s outreach by launching awareness campaigns and opening up regional offices. He informed that Honorary Advisors had also been appointed abroad to facilitate overseas Pakistanis in the USA, Canada, Sweden, UAE, Hong Kong and the Philippines. He added that FTO had appointed leading businessmen as Honorary Advisors from various Chambers of Commerce and Industries to facilitate the business community. “To ensure prompt response against the maladministration of tax authorities, a mobile App has been developed enabling aggrieved complainants to lodge complaints and check their status using mobile/smart devices”, he stated.

He apprised that dynamic training sessions had also been conducted to enhance the skills and expertise of Ombudsman institutions.