Karachi: The Pakistan Business Council (PBC) – while welcoming the government’s relief package – recommended provisions of another package specifically for the business community, a news source reported.
PBC Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Ehsan A Malik shared the council’s proposed relief plan draft in a letter to the Advisor to the Prime Minister on Finance Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh. The draft proposes deferring and foregoing certain taxes from the private sector. Instead PBC proposes measures to retain employees and assisting the cash flow of manufacturing industries during the difficult time.
In particular, the letter focuses on breaking down the sales
tax and excise duty for the three month period between February and April to be
paid in six monthly instalments starting from July 2020.
The letter further recommended that the 3% sales tax applied
at the import stage be abolished. Additionally, the letter also seeks reducing
turnover tax from 1.5% to 0 for the Tax Years 2020 and 2021.
