40 percent of NTN holders do not file tax returns: Chairman.

ISLAMABAD, October 10, 2009 (Balochistan Times): Chairman Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) Sohail Ahmed on Friday said that out of 1.7 million National Tax Number (NTN) holders only 60 percent file their returns while 40 percent do not file. We have initially identified 13,000 NTM holders who filed their returns last year but did not pay taxes according to their expenditures or sources of income will be issued notices asking them to pay their due taxes to avoid actions, he told media at an informal meeting here at FBR house today. Newly appointed Spokesman and Member Direct Tax Policy of FBR, Asrar Rauf was also present on the occasion. He added that the FBR would encourage them to correct their record and pay taxes according to their expenditures from resources otherwise their data will be checked from the Data bank of the FBR and the evaded amount would be recovered from them. The Chairman FBR said that the government has facilitated the taxpayers and launched Universal Self Assessment Scheme (USAS) to file their returns honestly and according to their income and expenditures to the revenue department. If the taxpayers , despite this facility evade taxes than it is the right of the tax collecting authority to check the returns through audit whenever and wherever they felt necessary and find fault, he remarked. Reply to a question, Chairman FBR Sohail Ahmed said that this year the ratio e-filing was progressing well. He said that in the year July 1, 2010 the Value Added Tax (VAT) would replace the General Sales Tax (GST). Sohail Ahmed said that he as Chairman of FBR is enjoying full authority to run the organization adding his organization was also enjoying full autonomy. He said those employees would be given monetary rewards who performed well and achieved their given revenue targets. He was of the view that tax to GDP ratio could be enhanced provided the taxpayers should file their returns properly and pay their due taxes to the country. He said that Taxpayers were paying their taxes because they knew that FBR was there to question them. He expressed the hope that Data bank of the FBR would help identify more taxpayers who do not pay their due taxes to the government.

(THROUGH ASIA PULSE)