Textile millers assured of early disposal of refund claims

LAHORE: Lahore Chief Commissioner Corporate Office Regional Tax Officer (RTO) Amna Hassan has assured Punjab All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) Chairman Abdul Rahim Nasir of the speedy disposal of refund claims, adding that the government is committed to sanctioning all pending income and sales tax refunds in order to relieve the export-related industry from a liquidity crunch, especially in view of the post-Covid economic meltdown.

The development came during a meeting of the RTO and other tax officials with Punjab APTMA chairman. A large number of APTMA members were also present on the occasion.  

Amna Hassan said that a dedicated cell would soon be set up for manual processing of all deferred cases to ensure that no deferred claim remains pending for more than one month. 

“Efforts are being made for normal processing sales tax claims to avoid deferment of huge amounts by the FASTER system,” she added.  

She said that the taxpayers would be allowed to adjust their current sales tax liabilities against pending income tax refunds. 

The RTO also assured of forwarding a list of all sales tax registered manufacturers of textile falling in its jurisdiction to Lahore Electric Supply Company (LESCO) with the direction for not charging Withholding Tax (WHT) on electricity bills of the said mills and agreed that the benefit of Clause 66, Part IV of the Second Schedule to Income Ordinance should not be subjected to any specific exemption certificate from tax authorities.  

She maintained that issuance of exemption certificates would also be expedited to avoid undue delays faced by member mills in the province and asked the APTMA members to contact Commissioner Mian Khalid if they face any issue in this regard.   

Acknowledging that undue inclusion of all buyers and suppliers from suspected units in investigations related to tax fraud cases caused genuine taxpayers to feel frustrated, Amna Hassan said arrangements are being made to stop summoning all registered persons in cases where business was done after getting confirmation of being on the Active Taxpayer List ( ATL) of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) and duly complying with the procedures and requirements of sales tax law. 

The RTO also appreciated the suggestion that APTMA may be associated with assisting the tax office in a meaningful inquiry in all such inquiries. 

Punjab APTMA Chairman Abdul Rahim Nasir expressed his gratitude to the RTO for her assurance of early resolution of tax relating issues of the industry and hoped that such interactions would continue in the larger interest of the country’s exports, employment and investment.