KARACHI: FTO Asif Mehmood Jah has directed FBR to disposed of pending tax refund claims for the tax year 2018 and to ensure that commissioner concerned revisit the instant case.
Brief facts of the case were that, complainant was a Government servant whose application for Tax Year 2018 was rejected on the basis that evidence of tax deduction was not attached with application.
Federal Tax Ombudsman sought Secretary Revenue Division for comments, the Chief Commissioner–IR RTO informed that complainants application for refund had already been rejected as there was no refund application pending.
During investigation of the subject complaint FTO has made observation that is In the instant case order u/s 170(4) is a classic example of departmental inattention and incompetence as; one page order dated 19th August, 2020 for TY 2018 categorically states at Para 3 of the order that; “Necessary evidence of tax payments is placed on record.” However, in the concluding Para of same order the officer opines, “that the taxpayer neither furnished any evidence regarding tax deduction manually not attached any evidence in support of refund claimed In view of above facts of the case, the refund application is rejected” Contradiction and carelessness are more than evident, no opportunity of hearing was given to aggrieved taxpayer prior to passing rejection order. In addition to departmental attention, tax deduction mainly relates to section 236K which was CNIC based and internally verifiable from FBR’s portal.
In view of the above, Tax ombudsman directed FBR to pay the tax refund for the tax year 2018 to the aggrieved taxpayer as per law and the commissioner concerned revisits the impugned order for TY2018.