Unprecedented increase in tax filers witnessed: Acting FBR chairman

ISLAMABAD: Acting Federal Bureau of Revenue (FBR) Chairman Dr Nausheen Amjad on Tuesday said that an unprecedented 160 percent increase in tax filers was witnessed during the ongoing year as one million more taxpayers have been registered with the tax authority, ARY NEWS reported.

Giving a briefing to the National Assembly’s (NA) Public Accounts Committee (PAC), the acting FBR chief said that the tax revenue is facing a shortfall of upto Rs 307 billion due to the decline in exports.

She said that although the tax collection remained lower than the set targets however it was still far better than the previous year as they had achieved 97 percent of previous year’s tax target during the first seven months of the ongoing year.

“We have collected Rs 345 billion more tax during seven months of this year as compared to the same period during the past year,” she said adding that their tax target was initially set at Rs 5500 billion but was revised upto Rs 5250 after successful talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

When the committee member and PML-N Senator Mushahid Hussain asked her regarding the performance of the FBR Chairman Shabbar Zaidi, she said that he performed well and was currently on sick leave.

Another PML-N Parliamentarian Ayaz Sadiq said that the Chairman FBR should be from within the tax body and the PAC should send its recommendations in this regard.

On February 28, the FBR said there will be no further extension in the deadline for filing of income tax returns for the tax year 2019. It said the Active Taxpayer list of 2018 would be replaced by the list of 2019 at midnight on Feb 29.

Those who failed to file returns in the tax year 2019 would be stricken off the list.

Unprecedented 160 percent increase in tax filers witnessed: Acting FBR chairman