LAHORE : All chambers across the country and United Business Group Monday asked individuals, investors and tycoons to take full advantage of well-designed and well conceived nationwide tax amnesty to declare all assets or cash parked offshore or within the country by the end of the current month with extremely nominal tax.
In a statement issued here today, SAARC CCI Senior Vice President (SVP) and United Business Group (UBG) central chairman Iftikhar Ali Malik said this is the best scheme and well-developed plan offered by the government and one should avail it. Highlighting the benefits of amnesty scheme, he said it would increase tax revenue, enhance foreign exchange reserves, reduce the current account deficit, improve balance of payments, bring foreign
capital to Pakistan and enhance economic activities besides bringing investment in lawful network.
He said the new income tax reforms package coupled with tax-amnesty scheme announced by the previous government, will immensely help bring non-taxpayers and tax evaders into tax-net besides broaden the revenue base of the country where only 1.2 million people out of the total population of 207 million pay taxes.He said increasing tax base and revenue generation was imperative for provision of better economic and social services to people. Pakistan needed such type of amnesty scheme because people transferred their money abroad due to terrorism and poor law and order situation in the past.
He said that Chairman FBR along with his high level team had also detailed interaction with him and President FPCCI Ghazanfar Ali Bilour and other office bearers a couple of day ago at federal capital and assured full co-operation to facilitate the volunteers. FBR chief further expressed the optimism that the government would further facilitate private sector to promote infant industries.
Iftikhar Ali Malik said that that the law and order situation is now fully restored in the country and people can bring their money back by taking full advantage of the new scheme. Under this scheme that would be available till June 30, local and foreign assets in shape of cash could be whitened by paying 5% and 2% penalty respectively, on undeclared assets.
He further said due to its positive, the duration of the scheme is needed to be extended in order to get maximum benefit from the voluntary asset declaration programme. ?The amnesty scheme should be extended till September 2018, the tax filing period to get maximum benefit from the scheme. Countries like Argentina, Brazil, Indonesia, which had introduced such schemes on the same time, had also given eight to nine months, he added.
He said even the caretaker government can extend the period from June 30 to next few months as the scheme is now part of the finance bill. In financial matters the interim government enjoys powers to take major decisions. He said another positive aspect of this scheme is that under this scheme, the Computerized National Identity Card (CNIC) number has been declared as the
National Tax Number. People will now be able to use their CNIC numbers to file tax returns, he said.
