Rs1m per declaration difference between two amnesty schemes

ISLAMABAD: Under fresh amnesty scheme, the FBR so far received 94,206 declarations with deposited tax amount of Rs42 billion that indicates on average per declaration paid up tax amount stands at Rs0.4 million.

The last amnesty introduced during the PML-N led regime had received total 82,889 declarations with paid up tax amount of Rs124.8 billion that demonstrated that each of the declaration on average paid tax amount of around Rs1.4 million into the national kitty.

“Although, the fresh amnesty has so far attracted more declarations than the past amnesty but on average per declaration paid up tax amount declined by Rs1 million,” the analysis done on the comparison of the two last amnesties showed.

This scribe made several attempts to get official version of the FBR, but no one was available till filing of this report. Everyone, including Chairman FBR, responded through SMS that they were busy so could not talk right now.

When renowned chartered account and tax expert Ashfaque Tola was contacted for comments on Monday, he said that the fresh amnesty so far attracted more declarations as it was availed by new filers and would help achieving the objective of documentation. However, he said that the last amnesty had fetched more tax revenues because it was availed mostly by those who declared bulk of assets and income to regularise them. He said that most of the foreign declarations had availed the last amnesty scheme by whitening their assets.

Another official told this scribe that the total number of filers crossed two million taxpayers first time in the country’s history, and it demonstrated that those availing amnesty were coming into tax net.

The last amnesty scheme introduced at the twilight of PML-N led regime in 2018 had fetched Rs124.8 billion in taxes for whitening of Rs2.5 trillion black assets and income. Out of total Rs124.8 billion, the FBR had collected Rs90 billion in June 2018 while the remaining amount of about Rs35 billion was collected in July 2018.

The government had received total 82,889 declarations in last tax amnesty scheme for whitening of Rs2,500 billion out of which foreign assets having worth of Rs1,040 billion and domestic assets of Rs1460 billion were made part of the formal economy of the country.

Out of total 82,889 declarations, the FBR received 5,929 foreign and 76,960 domestic declarations. The last amnesty scheme had fetched $436 million foreign currency.

Meanwhile, Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has explained that the last date of filing declaration under Assets Declaration Scheme has been extended through a Presidential Ordinance up to 3rd July because Parliament is not in session. As the last date is now extended, the condition of retaining cash, foreign currency and liquid assets not repatriated is also extended till 3rd July, 2019. Hence, all such declarants are required to retain cash in their bank accounts till 3rd July, 2019.

According to statement issued here on Monday stating that Assets Declaration Ordinance, 2019 has been incorporated as section 17 of the Finance Act, 2019. As per section 8 of the Assets Declaration Act, 2019, the condition to declare cash was to deposit such cash in the declarant’s bank account and to retain it in the bank account up to the 30th day of June, 2019.

Similar condition exists in case of declaration of foreign currency that such foreign currency was to be deposited in the declarant’s foreign currency account and was to be retained in such account till the 30th day of June, 2019. Foreign liquid assets not repatriated into Pakistan was required to be deposited in the declarer’s foreign bank account on or before 30th day of June, 2019.