Smuggling of 11 items causing $2.6 billion loss to national exchequer: report

ISLAMABAD: In the first-ever study to quantify the exact losses have found that major smuggling-prone items in Pakistan have caused revenue losses to the tune of $2.6 billion per annum to the country’s national exchequer. “Major 11 smuggling prone items are causing losses to the national exchequer in the shape of taxes to the tune of $2.6 billion on annual basis,” a panel of experts belonging to renowned institutions such as Harvard University, LUMS and others have estimated in a study in collaboration with the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR).
It is generally believed in Pakistan that the volume of smuggling is much higher than the recent official estimates calculated by a panel of experts.The major smuggling-prone items are: cloth, tea, tyres and tubes, Iranian diesel, polyethylene HDPE (Plastic Dana), cigarettes, electronic goods, non-duty paid/ smuggled vehicles, generators and auto parts. When contacted, the newly-appointed FBR Chairman Nisar Mohammad Khan said the tax machinery had identified some gaps which would be discussed with the report authors after which this report would be made public.