Chairman, Pakistan Tanners Association (PTA) Shaikh Saqib Saeed Masood emphasised the need to review the sales tax regime particularly exclusion of hides and skins from the 6th Schedule of the Sales Tax Act, 1990, which badly hits the value-added export-oriented leather sector.
He stated that the leather sector is the 2nd largest export earning value-added industry of Pakistan with annual exports of 1.144 billion dollars which is an employment intensive providing jobs to more than one million people and represents as mother industry of leather garments, footwear, gloves and leather goods producing world's finest quality leather and leather products.
The leather industry having tremendous growth potential will become 3 billion dollar Industry in next 3 years if encouraging Government support with provision of level playing field is ensured. Chairman PTA further pointed out that the leather industry contributes its share in billion of Rupees to the national kitty regularly through payment of customs duty, sales tax, income tax, withholding tax, export development surcharge (EDS), tax on services, EOBI, social security, etc. During the last six years of export history, the leather exporters paid 15.804 million dollar towards EDS, ie approximately 2.634 million dollar per annum.
He averred that the value-added leather industry is very much perturbed due to un-business friendly policies of the government and disturbing law-and-order situation of the country. There is need to review the sales tax regime particularly exclusion of hides and skins in the 6th schedule of the Sales Tax Act, 1990, which badly hits the value-added export-oriented leather sector. He apprised that the hides and skins (dry and wet) are included in the revised edition-Manual of Agricultural Produce Market Committee Laws of the Provinces as Agricultural Produce like COTTON un-ginned (PHUTTI), COTTON ginned (LINT), cotton waste.
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