ISLAMABAD: The government’s biggest documentation measure to provide Computerized National Identity Card (CNICs) numbers of the unregistered buyers would be retained in the coming budget (2021-22).
Sources told Business Recorder that the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has received many budget proposals to abolish the said condition of the CNIC, as this condition remained unimplemented for the last many years.
Most of the budget proposals from the organised and documented sectors talked about the abolition of the CNIC condition through the Finance Bill 2021. But the government cannot take away such major documentation measures. Therefore, it would continue in the next fiscal year 2021-22.
To broaden the tax base, the condition of CNIC was introduced in Finance Act 2019, since persons involved in the furtherance of taxable activity need to be captured through such measures.
However, in order to ease compliance cost, the threshold was enhanced from Rs50,000 to Rs100,000.
The FBR has already expanded the scope of disallowance of input tax on account of non-mentioning of the Computerised National Identity Card Number (CNIC) of the buyer by the seller on the invoice required under Section 23 of the Sales Tax Act, 1990.
The condition of the CNIC from the unregistered buyers was made applicable from February 1, 2020, onwards, but not practically enforced by the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR).
The business community has proposed to the FBR to abolish the condition of the CNIC in the upcoming budget (2021-22).
Up till now, no such proposal has been finalised to abolish the CNIC condition through the Finance Bill, 2021.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2021
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