Govt to ease tax payment mechanism

ISLAMABAD: The Board of Investment (BoI) has said government's focus was on tax reforms and further steps to ease payment of tax mechanism for the local and foreign investors would be taken.

Business environment could be improved further by giving consideration to 70 withholding provision of taxes, including clause (72-B), part IV second schedule of the Income Tax Ordinance, BoI spokesman Shah Jahan Shah told APP on Tuesday.

He said an effective system of taxation helped formalise the economy, encourage economic growth, shape political cohesion between tiers of the government, and increased social sector service delivery.

He stressed on reforming the taxation regime, particularly reducing the administrative burden on tax payers through merging and addressing the multiplicity of taxes, tax payments, and tax collecting agencies.

Shah Jahan said in Pakistan, tax payment was taking more time and also added administrative burden as compared to high income Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries.

He said the business community has demanded inexpensive supply of energy; ie, electricity and gas for generating more business activity and growth in the country. “Foreign investors are keen to invest in various sectors of economy in the country,” he added.

The government was committed to providing a friendly environment for doing business to the aspiring foreign investors through global competitiveness for Multinational Companies (MNCs), he said.

Shah Jahan said a total of seven Special Economic Zone (SEZs) cells had been approved for facilitating investors through one-window operations.

"SEZs’ investors would get the facility for plant and machinery import without customs duty in all four provinces of the country," he added.