Lahore: The federal government has decided to exempt withholding tax on foreign remittances deposited in bank accounts from July 1 onward, a news source reported. To this effect, the Finance Division (FD) has stated that it expects remittance levels to exceed USD 22 billion by the end of the going fiscal year.
It further stated that during July-February period of FY 2019-20, the remittances stood at USD 15.1 billion. It also shared measures to increase remittances, outlook, and recommendations.
The FD officials said that the government planned to launch a ‘National Remittance Loyalty Programme’ from September onwards. For this purpose, it will collaborate with major commercial banks and government agencies. The loyalty programme will provide various incentives to overseas Pakistanis through mobile apps and cards.
The officials opined that the Pakistan Remittance Initiative (PRI) had helped attract higher remittances from the expats. The government introduced various measures to promote foreign remittances through official channels.
