Selected undocumented sectors: FBR plans to conduct physical surveys

ISLAMABAD: The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has planned to conduct physical surveys of selected undocumented sectors, according to the new tax reform plan of the FBR.

The draft of the new Inland Revenue reform plan discussed in detail the idea of the physical surveys in selected undocumented sectors.

According to the reform plan, the FBR will explore practicable techniques to verify the accuracy of reporting by the informal economy. This reform action will undertake research to identify ways in which income reporting can be verified for sectors which cannot be covered by remote monitoring through POS, track and trace or withholding taxes.

Modern tax administration actively works to make it as easy as possible for taxpayers to comply. Building on the work to date to provide services online, our aim is the simplify the online process of filing tax forms, expanding our range of electronic services, and working with tax advisors to support voluntary compliance. The FBR will also introduce taxpayer surveys to establish what is working well and where we need to improve our service to taxpayers.

The FBR will provide timely information about changes in tax laws and procedures and build a more cordial relationship with taxpayers through the tax advisors. In addition, well-designed and motivational training programs will be conducted for tax advisors to communicate IRS objectives of tax policy and how they might affect taxpayers, including common goals of increased tax compliance.

The FBR will conduct taxpayer surveys to elicit views about services and address issues in systems and software. Specially designed surveys will be conducted periodically to seek taxpayers’ views and perceptions regarding the complexity, hurdles, and barriers in the way of compliance, as well as problems in interactions with the tax administration, incidence of corruption, and costs of compliance. Taxpayers’ feedback will be sought regarding specific components and processes of the IRS and used to generate actionable information for reform and process reengineering, the FBR added.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022