40% tax on mobile cards: SC seeks reply in one week
The hearing on suo-motu notice against mobile phone companies was held on Wednesday
Islamabad (Pakistan Point News – 8th May, 2018) A hearing on the suo-motu notice against mobile phone companies charging extra tax was held in the Supreme Court on Wednesday.
A four-member Supreme Court bench headed by Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar held the hearing. The Supreme Court while issuing notices to mobile companies, the four provincial and Federal governments, sought a reply in one week.
The court asked as per what law the withholding tax is being taken? The chief justice said that the law of withholding tax seems imperfect. Aren’t these taxes exploitation of the people?
Justice Ejaz ul Ahsan said that 42% tax is deducted from recharge before making any call. The court also summoned the finance minister and asked why so much tax is being taken from 14 crore Pakistanis. Justice Ahsan also asked for a comparison of card rates with other countries. He said that this is an illegal way to collect money from the people.
Justice Umar Ata Bandial asked how much tax is deducted in other countries. He asked about the law according to which sales tax is collected.
The lawyer present in the court said that 17% sales tax is collected from federal areas while 19% is collected from the provinces.
The chief justice also hinted towards taking an action on taxes imposed on diesel. The hearing of the case has been adjourned till next week.
Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Saqib Nisar took notice of the high levy charged on mobile phone cards in the country on May 3. The chief justice asked why such a huge amount is deducted by the private mobile companies and under what tax heads. The Supreme Court issued notices to all the mobile telephone operators in the country and had summoned the Attorney General over the issue.
At present, as per some reports, on the charge of a Rs100 prepaid mobile card, a 19.5% federal excise duty is charged along with 12.5% withholding tax and 10% service/maintenance charge. According to statistics revealed by the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority in January this year, the number of mobile phone users stands at 144 million as compared to 142.5 million in October 2017.