FBR staff barred from unauthorised interaction with businessmen

ISLAMABAD: The FBR has slapped ban on unauthorised interaction of FBR staff with the business community.

FBR Chairman Shahbar Zaidi advised the business community to report to FBR if any person contacted them without proper authorisation.

“From November 1, 2019 strict enforcement will be made against unauthorised interaction between FBR staff and business community. Business community is suggested to report to FBR if any person contact through any manner without proper authorisation”, the FBR chairman stated in his tweet on Saturday. “No harassment” he further stated.

He said the FBR will very soon issue very strict instructions to all officers, employees and staff of all formations of FBR not to interact with businessmen through personal visits, telephone calls, cellphone messages or emails. Automated/authorised system will be only manner to interact.

In another tweet, the FBR chairman states that the number of return filers touched to 918,027 till October 25 against 585,209 filed during same period last year, reflecting an increase of 332,818.

So far, the return filers in Tax Year 2019 have shown an increase of 332,818 returns till October 25 when compared with same period of Tax Year 2018.

The FBR chairman said that the average returns filed per day stood at 18,735.24 for tax year 2019 against average returns filed per day was 8,242.38 for tax year 2018, reflecting an increase of 127 percent.

The data showed in the tweet stated that total returns filed up to October 20 were 788,389. The upward trend was witnessed for filing of returns from October 20 to 25.

On October 21, total number of filed returns stood at 22,016. The FBR has received 26,125 returns on October 22. Taxpayers filed 25,619 returns on October 23. On October 24, a total of 30,471 returns were filed and FBR received 25,407 returns on October 25.