Finance Bill may introduce amendment: vehicles carrying goods must have excise duty invoices

Finance Bill (2017-18) is expected to introduce a major amendment in the Federal Excise Act to confiscate vehicles with goods, carrying any excisable commodity including cement, beverages, edible oil etc, in case federal excise invoices are not placed inside vehicles carrying excisable goods.
Sources told Business Recorder here on Thursday the budget proposal was discussed during the Tax Policy Conference held at the FBR House. The conference was chaired by Haroon Akhtar Khan Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Revenue. Presentations were made by Chief Commissioner Regional Tax Office (RTO) Peshawar and senior officials of Large Taxpayer Units (LTUs) of Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad. The remaining RTOs would make their presentations on Friday (second day of conference).
Under the existing practice, the vehicles carrying cigarettes must have the excise duty invoices. In case tax paid invoices are not available, the department is legally empowered to confiscate the vehicles alongwith cigarettes.
The same condition would be made applicable on all other excisable commodities like cement, beverages, edible oil. If the vehicles carrying excisable goods are transferred from manufacturing premises to another place without the authentic excise invoices, the same goods could be seized by the department.
Under the Federal Excise Act, the Board may, by notification in the official Gazette, specify goods in respect of which a copy of the invoice shall be carried or accompanied with the conveyance during their transportation or movement in such manner and subject to such conditions as may be specified in this behalf either in such notification or otherwise. The Board may, by notification in the official Gazette, specify the goods or services in respect of which sales invoice shall be issued electronically and prescribe the manner and procedure therein, it added.
The law is presently applicable on cigarettes which would be extended to all other excisable commodities under the Finance Bill (2017-18).
Tax Policy Conference of FBR also discussed a proposal to amend Sales Tax Act, 1990 in budget (2017-18) to effectively deal with the goods manufactured in non-tariff area of Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) and brought into tariff areas. As sales tax is not applicable in FATA, the good manufactured in FATA are not subjected to sales tax. But when the goods are brought into the tariff areas, there should be strict mechanism to check such goods.
During Tax Policy Conference, officials from the field formations discussed different provisions of Sales Tax Act and Federal Excise Act for correction of laws.
Tax officials also raised anomalies in different tax laws during the conference. The suggestions/proposals aimed towards ameliorating irritants and rejuvenating economic growth vis-a-vis state revenues.
Among others, the areas identified as having revenue potential for optimum realisation of taxes: broadening of tax base; measures for improvement in the tax to GDP ratio; rationalisation /analysis of tax exemptions; and withholding taxes and their application for economic development in the country and taxation of e-commerce.