KARACHI: Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) Chairman Nisar Mohammad Khan has inaugurated Large Taxpayers Unit-II here on Tuesday.
In order to cater higher tax collection in country, the FBR expanded the Large Taxpayers Unit further establishing another unit named LTU-II as it will enhance the performance of the FBR’s wing Inland Revenue Service (IRS) to resolve the issues of big industries.
On the occasion of inauguration ceremony, Nisar, while addressing the media said that the FBR’s collection is on right track, which is positive as the FBR has achieved almost 18 percent growth in nine months tax collection target that had kept Rs3.104 trillion revenue collection target, assigned by International Monetary Fund (IMF), on line.
Nisar said that tax to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) ratio increased by 0.3 percent to 0.8 percent this year which was stood at 0.5 percent in the corresponding period of last fiscal.
‘The FBR is striving to facilitate the tax payers and Income tax filers by launching different amnesty schemes regularly adding that currently one million return filers are on tax net while this sluggish growth of return filers could be attributed to complex tax filing process which is to be relaxed further’, said Nisar.
He further said that FBR has collected Rs 5 billion taxes in first half of Fiscal Year 2015-16 (FY16) which was marginally below from the set target of Rs 9 billion.
Nisar said that performance of IRS enforcement wing is weak and officials are de-motivated though FBR is working to enhance low effective performance of enforcement so that confidence of tax officers could regain.
Sources said that FBR has taken the decision to expand LTU further in order to cater large industries as the companies having more than Rs 5 million turnovers will be dealt by LTUI-II which were managing by different Regional Tax Offices (RTOs) and LTUs before.
The FBR primarily operates through its main collection arms, its field formations, RTOs and Large Taxpayer Units (LTUs) across the country. This new unit will work under the IRS which brings in about 54% of FBR’s total collection.
The inauguration ceremony also attended by members of the Federation of Cambers of Commerce and Industry and officials of other trade bodies. Income Tax Officers (now Inland Revenue Officers) are considered some of the very powerful officers in the country. For the purpose of collection of revenue and pursuing tax evaders, FBR’s powers & functions also include but are not limited to: carrying out inquiries and audits/investigations into the tax affairs, commanding arrests, attachment as well as public auction of movable and immovable assets of a non-compliant.