Central Board of Revenue (CBR) Chairman Abdullah Yusuf has said that the government is considering various proposals for streamlining tax rates on listed companies, allowances of salaried class and complications pertaining to tax exemptions would be simplified and streamlined in the Budget 2005-06. While addressing the quarterly "Conference of regional commissioners and commissioners of income tax and director generals of Large Taxpayer Units and Medium Taxpayer Units" on Thursday, Yusuf asked the tax officials to give their viewpoint to simplify the entire process. The CBR chairman noted with satisfaction that the targets of income tax collection, fixed for the first 10 months of the current financial year, have been surpassed.
Member (Direct Taxes), Salman Nabi, informed the conference that the net collection of income tax for the first 10 months of 2004-05 has surpassed the target of Rs 129.7 billion. The gross collection of income tax up to April was Rs 152.84 billion as compared to Rs 131.29 billion for the same period of the last year, registering an increase of 16 percent.
He said that the payment of refunds made up to April was Rs 22.27 billion as compared to Rs 12.57 billion during the corresponding period of the last financial year, showing an increase of 76 percent.
Salman expressed confidence that the target of revenue collection for 2004-05 would be achieved conveniently.
The CBR chairman stressed upon the need to encourage corporatisation and documentation. "We want to see more corporate sectors coming up," he said.
Referring to the existing 3 percent tax-to-GDP ratio as well as income tax, he said, it was one of the lowest in the region. He called upon the commissioners to utilise all available information, tax data and resources to at least double this ratio. Our tax base, which is very narrow at the moment, has to be enlarged. He directed the RCITs, CITs, and DGs to constitute special teams exclusively for broadening the tax base.
Habib Fakhruddin, Member (FATE), CBR, in his analytical report, presented during the conference, gave a detailed analysis of the data obtained from income tax returns, etc, for 2004.
In his report, Habib pointed out various discrepancies and errors in the returns filed by corporate and non-corporate sectors and salaried class and statements submitted by the retailers under Section 115 (4) of the Income Tax Ordinance, etc Commenting on the report, Yusuf said that it was a tremendous effort for the first time on the national level.
He said the report has clearly indicated the areas, which are required to be focussed for more revenue generation. "Habib Fakhruddin worked it single-handedly and highlighted the real issues. This can be effectively utilised by the tax officers to improve the system, to check tax evasion and to do their job in a better way," he said.
Regional commissioners of income tax and director generals of LTUs in their presentations briefed the participants about pending appeal cases, payment of refund position, audit cases, their efforts for broadening of tax base, revenue collection vis-à-vis targets for the first 10 months of the current financial year, profiles of taxpayers, taxation of real estate business, upgradation of data of returns and weeding out of old record.
The conference was informed that all necessary work on Large Taxpayer Unit, Lahore has almost been completed and it is likely to be inaugurated on May 25 by Punjab Governor Lieutenant General Khalid Maqbool (Retd).
CBR's Member (Legal) Saeed Ahmad Zaidi, Member (IMS) Aamir Z. Chaudhry, Member (Admn) Iftikhar Ahmad, Member (Audit) Amjad Pervez, Director General (Inspection) Usman Khalid Mirza and Director General (Inquiries) Abdul Ghaffar were also present on the occasion.
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