Even though the representatives of small traders of All Pakistan Anjuman-e- Tajran and Karachi Tajir Ittehad boycotted the talks with the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) on Tuesday, yet their pressure has forced the government to agree with the representatives of Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) to constitute three sub-committees to address the withholding tax issue.
The three sub-committees consisting of representatives of the chambers and the FBR will finalise their recommendations by August 14 to end confusion about registration under the tax net. Two of the committees will finalise recommendations for income tax and sales tax while the third committee will address the issue of communication gap between traders and taxmen.
Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (RCCI) President Syed Asad Mashadi told Pakistan Today after the talks that they (FPCCI and chambers) would address the issue of communication gap between traders and tax machinery.
“We too have serious reservations over the tax measures, which will burden the existing taxpayers but hopefully the committees will resolve these issues,” he said.
About the shutter-down strike on August 1, he said that the call would stay but they would talk to the traders to lessen the mistrust. He said the traders were ready to come under the tax net but the tax structure was too complicated and needed to be simplified. “Hopefully our effort will address the tax concerns of traders and it will pave the way for getting registered under the tax net.”
According to official sources, lengthy talks proved that there was wide mistrust between traders and taxmen. Traders were not ready to accept any assurance from the taxmen and preferred to remain outside the tax net. However, the government side made it clear that the traders would have to come under the tax net otherwise they would pay higher charges for cash withdrawals and other banking instruments.
The three sub-committees will meet on August 7 to finalise their recommendations which would be submitted for government approval by August 14. If the government accedes to the proposals then legal cover would be provided in next 14 days to implement it from September 1, the source said.
