The Central Board of Revenue (CBR) has directed the Regional Commissioners of Income Tax (RCITs) to impose penalty on withholding agents not filing monthly statements and to do away with the sketchy data of taxpayers after verification of addresses from the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra).
On the conclusion of the 12th National Tax Conference held here on Wednesday, officials told Business Recorder that CBR Chairman M. Abdullah Yusuf has expressed serious concerns over non-filing of monthly statements by some of the withholding agents.
He directed the field formations to penalise all such withholding agents and ensure that no body is allowed to get away with the tax money one has collected on behalf of the CBR. About NTN Master Index, officials said that the data of untraceable persons would be excluded from the master database where addresses were not verified from Nadra.
The data including Computerised National Identity Card Numbers (CNICs) would also be confirmed from Nadra. In case of un-matched residential addresses, the data of these taxpayers would also be excluded from the Master Index. On reconciliation of data of taxpayers as per MPRs vis-à-vis Master Index, he directed the IT Commissioners to go through the files of each and every taxpayer for verifying the data.
Officials said that the conference also discussed the profiles of taxpayers compiled by the field officials for incorporating in the Tax Management System (TMS). The TMS would operate at the reformed units containing data of taxpayers based on these profiles.
In this regard, CBR Chairman directed the field formations to submit proper tax profiles to the CBR, as the existing data is incomplete. Complete basic information of taxpayers should be submitted to the board, he said.
Officials said that the focus of Commissioners' presentations was on three major areas including tax collection, refunds and action on audit paras.
Sources said that the conference also decided that the Regional Tax Office (RTO), Faisalabad would become operational from February 1, 2007 and then RTO, Lahore would start functioning.
Meanwhile, the collections of direct taxes have shown an unprecedented growth of 64 percent in the first half of the current financial year (2006-07) as compared to the corresponding period of the last fiscal. Net collections of direct taxes from July-December, 2006 reached at Rs 170 billion as compared to Rs 104 billion in July-December, 2005.
On filing of returns, the conference was told that the total number of income tax returns received in the first six months of the current financial year were 15,45,952. As compared to the same period last year the receipt was 1,269,662 showing an increase of 2,76,290 returns or a growth of 21.7 percent.
Lauding the performance of the tax officers, the Secretary General Revenue Division expressed the confidence that they will continue to work with same missionary zeal and collect all due taxes, which are highly essential to accelerate the pace of economic and material development of the country.
He said their continued brilliant performance would not only help expand the tax base but also enhance the tax-to-GDP ratio that is the dire need of the country at the moment.
While reviewing the staff and infrastructure position of different model units, the Chairman directed the concerned officials in the headquarters to fulfil the genuine needs of all model units on priority basis. He specifically ordered for the supply of PCs to LTUs as per their requirements.
He said that in future, in all matters of RTOs the focal person will be the Director General of the respective RTO and he will regularly send a report to the Headquarters on the performance of the Commissioners under his jurisdiction.
Member (Direct Taxes) Salman Nabi, highlighting the overall achievements in direct taxes, informed the participants that the gross tax collection in first six months of current financial year was Rs 190 billion against a target of Rs 124 billion.
Out of this amount, refunds payment of Rs 20 billion was made leaving the net collection of Rs 170 billion which was Rs 66 billion more as compared to the last year's collection of Rs 104 billion in the same period thus showing a growth of 64 percent.
Refund payments of Rs 20 billion in six months of the current fiscal is also 33 percent more than the refund payment of Rs 15 billion made in the corresponding period of the last financial year ie 2005-06.
Conference was further informed that the tax collected with IT returns was Rs 45 billion as compared to the last year's Rs 23 billion indicating a growth of 96 percent. Similarly, total collection under advance tax up to December 2006 was Rs 59 billion as compared to Rs 26 billion in the same period of the last financial year indicating a growth of 127 percent.
Giving an update on refunds stock position, the member apprised the conference that the opening balance of the refund payment cases on July 1, 2006 was 6,699 cases with different field offices involving an amount of Rs 19.836 billion.
Later, 113,109 cases were added in which Rs 20.22 billion were involved. After deletion of 1,355 cases with an amount of Rs 356 million, total refunds stock available for disposal on July 1, 2006 was 1,18,453 cases involving an amount of Rs 39.7 billion. Out of this stock, refunds were issued to 55,980 claimants up to December 31, 2006 in which Rs 20 billion was involved thus leaving the closing balance of 62, 449 cases involving an approximate amount of Rs 20 billion. Member DT was confident that all the pending cases would be cleared in due course of time.
Later, the Director Generals of Large Taxpayers Units (LTUs), Director Generals of newly created Regional Tax Offices (RTOs) Regional Commissioners/ Commissioners of Income Tax, in their separate presentations, outlined the performance of their respective offices.
The presentations were made on: Revenue collections, payment of refunds, recovery of arrears, broadening of tax base, returns filing, progress on data entry, reconciliation of data of taxpayers as per MPR vis-à-vis Master Index, monitoring of WHT, sale of property and collection of CVT, progress on tax profiling and compliance of audit paras etc.
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