LAHORE: The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has obtained the record of 24,000 Pakistanis who had bought dollars in bulk during the fiscal year 2017-18.
The FBR has sent the list of their names to the Regional Tax Office in Lahore and they will be issued notices for inquiry. According to the sources in the FBR, the bureau’s officials are investigating the tax records of these individuals and preparing to grill them. It is learnt that out of 24,000 Pakistanis, 9,880 are based in Lahore.
The FBR will ask them about the sources of income that allowed them to buy dollars in bulk. According to the FBR, these persons had withdrawn money from their bank accounts to evade withholding tax and invested it in dollars, pounds, euros, gold and other currencies.
The government in coordination with the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) and the Finance Ministry launched a crackdown against dollar hoarders involved in speculative currency trade.
