Bank deposit condition to stop payment of less tax in future

ISLAMABAD: The tax amnesty scheme has made mandatory to show deposit slip of banks for availing asset declaration scheme in order to avoid paying of future tax liabilities at much less rates. For declaration of real estate assets, the government has hiked the evaluation rate of property to the tune of 150 percent of the notified rate of the FBR, but the effective rate of tax on property transaction would be standing at 2.25 percent under this amnesty scheme against normal tax rate of 4 percent. Top official sources told The News on Tuesday that although ordinance had not yet been promulgated for asset declaration scheme, its salient features showed that the amnesty scheme allowed revision of balance sheet of companies for period of last five years.

“We want to give them chance to get their balance sheet clean by declaring their income and assets genuinely,” said the official, and added that the real potential for generating revenues lies in corporate sector so the government decided to give them chance to contribute to national kitty. The last amnesty scheme introduced by the PML-N-led regime was availed 95 percent by existing taxpayers mainly because the real potential and wealth lied in hands of these people.

When asked about the reasons for making mandatory the showing of bank deposit slip for availing this scheme, the official said that in the last amnesty scheme many had availed the tax amnesty in order to avoid future tax liabilities.

Now, the FBR, according to the official, has plugged this loophole, but practically it would create problems for those who did not have money in their bank accounts and they would not be able to avail it.

Renowned chartered accountant Ashfaque Tola, when contacted, said the FBR took a number of steps in this scheme, but he would be able to offer comments after reading the ordinance and its language. He said the issuance of amnesty ordinance would clarify that how it could be availed.