Fashion designers, big apparel brands come on FBR radar

The big apparel brands have come on the Federal Board of Revenue’s (FBR) radar and the renowned fashion designer was also booked in a tax fraud case, ARY News reported on Thursday.

The whole fashion industry has come on FBR’s radar over alleged massive tax frauds. A renowned fashion designer has been booked in a tax fraud case by FBR Intelligence Karachi.

ARY News obtained the First Information Report (FIR) lodged by the FBR’s intelligence department against a renowned fashion designer.

Sources in the FBR intelligence told ARY News that many big apparel brands were involved in sales tax theft. Sources added that the fashion designers were causing massive losses to the national exchequer through fake sales tax invoices and the use of smuggled clothes.

According to the FIR, the fashion designer allegedly hid Rs140 million in sales tax in the invoices mentioning the sale of Rs830 million. Sources said that several popular clothing brands and fashion designers were involved in false invoicing in the country.

The FBR intelligence hinted at launching crackdowns against renowned fashion designers in the coming days to curb tax fraud. It was learnt that big brands were using fabric smuggled from Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) and other areas.

After the arrest, the renowned fashion designer secured bail after paying surety bonds worth Rs5 million, sources added.