Islamabad: The Senate Standing Committee on Finance on Tuesday endorsed the 40-year tax concessions for Gwadar after an in-camera session — with the decision coming after the government provided the committee with the original 2007 Gwadar agreement and the 2013 novation agreement, according to a news source. The committee further approved the tax holiday provision for sub-contractors as per the original agreement.
Earlier, reports had emerged that the original tax break had only extended to 20 years, and that the sub-contractors were not a part of the deal. Meanwhile, in the Finance Bill 2020, the government had proposed a 40-year tax holiday and had included sub-contractors under this provision as well. So, the senate committee had called for the government to provide the original Gwadar and novation agreements for verification. Now it has been announced that the suggested amendments in the finance bill had been in line with the 2007 Gwadar Port Agreement.
Speaking on the matter, Finance Committee Chairman Senator Farooq H Naek said that the laws proposed by the government and the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) were going to be useful for the development and operational progress of the Gwadar Port and Gwadar Free Zone.
