Chartered accountants and tax experts have demanded of the Central Board of Revenue (CBR) to place the draft of the Value Added Tax (VAT) Act, 2007 on the CBR official website for comments.
Sources told Business Recorder on Monday that if the CBR wanted to promulgate the draft in budget 2007-08, the proposed law should be circulated among the stakeholders. Tax experts said the CBR should not unilaterally enforce this important law without taking into confidence the business community.
For example, CBR Member Customs Shahid Rahim Sheikh had circulated the new Harmonised Commodity Description and Coding System (HS Code) 2007 for comments. Hard copies of the draft were dispatched to all the chambers/trade bodies, customs and sales tax collectorates, ministries and divisions concerned with a suggestion to give inputs thereon. The customs had given enough time to the business community to comment on the draft and incorporated viable suggestions.
Similarly, the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) had also placed draft of the Securities Act, 2007 on the official website for comments.
Sources said the board has deputed a senior team of sales tax officials to prepare Value Added Tax (VAT) Act, 2007 for simplifying all the existing sales tax/federal excise returns, statements and declarations. The VAT Act, 2007, may replace the Sales Tax Act, 1990, from next fiscal 2007-08.
The process simplification exercise has focused on the following areas: First, it would redraft sales tax statutes and regulations. Secondly, the committee would redesign all formats of returns, declarations, statements, etc. Thirdly, it would adopt best international practices for sales tax legislation/system. Fourthly, it would simplify the statutory and regulatory machinery of sales tax. Fifthly, it would ensure futuristic compatibility of returns, declarations, statements and sales tax documents with the information technology (IT) applications.
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