KARACHI: The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has been empowered through the Federal Budget 2021-22 to design and prescribe e-hearing module for the purpose of conducting income tax hearings and electronically receiving any information.

Through the Finance Bill 2021, the FBR on the recommendations of the Inland Revenue Service (IRS) has proposed the insertion of Section 227E in the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001.

According to Section 227E, the board is seeking powers to design and prescribe e-hearing module for the purpose of conducting hearings, granting opportunity of being heard and electronically receiving any information for the purpose of the Ordinance.

Under this section, the recording of e-hearing proceedings shall be admissible as evidence before any forum or court of law for the purpose of this Ordinance and the rules would be made for the purpose of this section.

Talking to the Business Recorder, the IR officers said that during the pandemic, this was the much-needed requirement for both the taxmen and the taxpayers, but there was no provision of e-hearing in the Ordinance. Hence, the taxmen and the taxpayers had no option but to conduct hearing physically.

Keeping this in view, it has been proposed to insert Section 227E in the Ordinance that would empower the FBR to design and prescribe e-hearing module for the purpose of conducting hearings, granting opportunity of being heard and electronically receiving any information.

Moreover, they said that it would also address the issues related to harassment and malpractices, effectively.

On the other hand, the WeBOC system already had an option to conduct e-hearing. However, the customs department, instead of rolling it out during the pandemic, still asked the taxpayers to visit the Customs House for the purpose due to reasons "known" to the customs officers.

Meanwhile, the All Pakistan Customs Agents Association (APCAA) chairman Arshad Jamal welcomed the proposal of the insertion of Section 227E in the Income Tax Ordinance 2001 by the federal government through the federal budget, saying that the customs department despite having the WeBOC module to conduct e-hearing, preferred to carry out physical hearing at the Customs House and urged the federal government to issue special instructions to the customs department for the enforcement of the said WeBOC module during the pandemic.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021