KARACHI: The Large Taxpayers Office (LTO) Karachi has recovered Rs31 billion in unpaid taxes by freezing the bank accounts of major defaulters, according to officials from the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR).
The recovery took place over the past few days as part of an ongoing enforcement drive to improve tax compliance among large corporate taxpayers in Karachi. The LTO Karachi is responsible for collecting taxes from high-volume and high-value taxpayers in Pakistan’s financial hub.
Officials said the action targeted several companies, including a prominent state-owned enterprise and private firms operating in the marine, housing, and energy sectors. Bank accounts were frozen after the companies failed to pay advance taxes as required under Section 147 of the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001.
One company did not pay Rs14.5 billion in advance tax due on June 15. Based on its turnover, LTO Karachi assessed the outstanding amount under Section 147 and instructed the company’s banks to debit the required funds. In a separate case, LTO Karachi recovered Rs12 billion from another company using the same method. Other recoveries were made from various firms that also failed to meet their advance tax obligations.
Section 147 of the ordinance requires taxpayers to make quarterly advance tax payments by September 25, December 25, March 25, and June 15. If companies do not comply, the FBR has the authority to take enforcement actions such as attaching bank accounts.
Recoveries were also made under Section 137(2) of the ordinance. This section allows tax authorities to issue a notice demanding payment of any amount due under an assessment order. Once the notice is served, the taxpayer must pay the amount within 30 days.
