The Federal Board of Revenue’s (FBR) Income Tax General Orders (ITGOs) against non-filers have resulted in fines of between Rs. 100 and Rs. 200 million for the telecom industry. The Telecom Operators Association has submitted an urgent request to the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) to remove these fines.
The group sent a letter to the authorities requesting that the “punitive measures” included in the Finance Bill 2024–25 be removed. Additionally, it asked for the examination and elimination of the advance tax of 75% on mobile services for non-filers who are not in compliance.
According to the association, the planned fines of Rs. 100 million and Rs. 200 million every two weeks for the telecom sector’s adoption of the ITGO Foreign investment is discouraged by these fines, which are viewed as punitive against telecom providers who have no direct involvement in tax filing complianceThe Senate Committee concurs with the association’s request to have these sanctions withdrawn.
The group bemoaned the operational difficulties in separating compliant and non-compliant tax filers among the 180 million active subscribers in Pakistan with regard to the 75 percent advance tax on mobile services. The letter called for a review and repeal of this amendment, stating that the current system is unable to carry out this provision in an effective manner.
The association recognized the Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb’s and the Chairman of the FBR’s dedication to supporting the FBR in accomplishing its objectives wherever possible and expressed gratitude for their cooperation on this topic, which specifically target non-tax filers are unfair and discriminatory.
The letter concluded, “Given the foregoing and the difficulties we have encountered and thoroughly discussed, we believe that these measures/proposals in the Fiscal Bill 2024 are unnecessary. As a result, we strongly recommend that these proposed amendments be immediately removed from the Finance Bill 2024–25 due to time constraints.”
