'RTO Making Efforts To Enhance Tax Base'

FAISALABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 02nd Nov, 2016 ) : Chief Commissioner Land Revenue Faisalabad Shad Muhammad on Wednesday said that Regional Tax Office (RTO) was making efforts to enhance tax base in addition to facilitating the tax payers.

Addressing the representatives of the business community at Faisalabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FCCI) here, he said that as many as 854 new multi storey plazas were constructed during last 4 years in Faisalabad.

"Out of these 558 are owned by the tax payers while remaining are not paying even a single penny to national kitty despite of having properties worth millions of rupees," he added. Commenting on the complaints regarding hurdles in sales tax registration, he said that only 157 cases were pending and most of these had incomplete documents.

He said that a strategy had been evolved to deal with such cases and hoped that this issue would be settled down during next month. Quoting the pending cases of zero rating at Regional Tax Office level, he said that those related to 2014 were 14000 but now only 10000 had been lying pending.

He further said that in 6000 cases the amount of refund claim was more than Rs 10 million while it was less than Rs 10 million in remaining cases. He said that instructions had been issued to settle down these cases in single hearing.

About income tax appeal cases of 2015, the Chief Commissioner said that decisions in 25% cases had been upheld while in other 25 % the competent appellate courts had suggested some modifications.

Yet in remaining 50% cases, the appeals had been rejected, he added. He said that in cases which had been decided the appellants should immediately clear their liabilities. He said, "We do not want to issue their arrest warrants or attachment of property orders which was allowed under the law." He said that they had directed the staff to visit such persons and convince them to voluntarily pay their dues.

Regarding pending of audit cases, he said that a mechanism had been made and hopefully 80% cases could be settled down by November and December. Chief Commissioner also underlined the importance to increase the ratio of Tax to GDP.

He said that system to issue NTN had also been streamlined. He also assured to settle down the Tax exemption case of FCCI and invited a delegation of FCCI to visit his office to resolve the pending issues.

President FCCI Engineer Muhammad Saeed Sheikh and Vice President Engineer Ahmed Hassan FCCI also spoke on the occasion. Later, FCCI memento was also presented to Shad Muhammad, Chief Commissioner in Land Revenue.