Attraction in tax amnesty scheme waning: Report

ISLAMABAD: The attraction in the tax amnesty scheme is waning after the governments’ decision to extend it till the 31^st of July, as declarations to legitimize offshore domestic and foreign assets slows down.

This was revealed by sources in the tax department and since July 1^st, the number of declarants has fallen for reasons unknown, reported Dawn.

Sources disclosed till July 19^th around 2,000 declarations had been received and shared amount of declared assets was not notable.

During July, the FBR has fetched around Rs3 billion in taxes under the tax amnesty scheme.

And the tax regulator has accelerated efforts to persuade people to avail the scheme before its end on July 31^st.

Also, the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has got data from authorities in Dubai and the United Kingdom (UK). It is sending messages to individuals via various mediums to take advantage of the scheme before formal notices get served on them.

And the officials from the tax regulator have been meeting with several chambers and associations and conducting seminars across Pakistan, persuading them to come forth and avail the scheme.

As per a senior tax official, the tax regulator is anticipating individuals would avail the scheme during the last days of the extended period.

He added, “We are in constant contact with the chartered firms who have given us positive vibes about the declarations under the scheme.”

Once the duration of the tax amnesty scheme ends July 31^st, a high-level committee comprising of chief commissioners will be setup specially for using of data regarding rents that Pakistani citizens receive from their properties in the UK.

And individuals showing their UK properties under the tax amnesty would be exempted from the notices, the official said.

The official said it had already been decided the committee would setup a procedure to serve notices on individuals who failed to declare their assets.

A similar procedure would be embraced for Dubai properties and declarations from Dubai were promising, said the official.

Separately, director intelligence and investigation has accumulated data of gift schemes, vehicles and properties and has been provided to regional tax offices.

Also, the country is a signatory to the OECD Multilateral Convention which would grant access to information about foreign financial accounts of Pakistani nationals from September 2018.