Islamabad: The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has retrieved details of all bank accounts that are liable to deduction of withholding tax, a news source reported. The authority has taken this measure to enhance scrutiny of non-filers.
In a recent statement, FBR reminded non-filers to take advantage of the government’s amnesty scheme and disclose their undeclared assets and accounts, for which the deadline will expire on June 30, 2019.
As per reports, FBR is adding the bank details received to the data bank it has developed in collaboration with the National Database & Registration Authority (NADRA). Previously, this data bank had lacked bank accounts information. With the new data added, FBR is now more confident about launching a pilot project for expanding the tax base. The federal institution plans to initiate this project from July 1.
Upon finding that only around 10% of over 50 million bank account holders were registered as income tax filers, FBR communicated with the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) to provide information on such bank accounts. SBP responded that it did not have such data, and advised the board to contact the banks concerned for this purpose under the Income Tax Law.
FBR has also asked the financial institutions to provide information of the benami accounts. The banks have decided to contact account holders possessing a balance worth PKR 500,000 or more. The banks will request their clients to make use of the amnesty scheme if they have not already declared their assets.
