Serious anomalies have been found in the newly introduced Income Tax Amendment Ordinance, 2018 wherein income tax rates for salaried individuals have been introduced to be effective from July 1, 2018. Tax lawyer Waheed Shahzad Butt told this correspondent that formula adopted for 3rd and 4th tax slabs introduced through the Income Tax Amendment Ordinance, 2018 is arbitrary, unjust and discriminatory. Rather than unfairly changing fixed tax factor for slab 4, the rate of 'variable component' for each slab ought to have been appropriately enhanced.
Maximum tax relief should be given to lower salary slabs instead of higher brackets of salary slabs, he maintained. It is evident when a taxpayer's annual salary increases from Rs 2,400,000 to Rs 4,800,000, the additional amount of Rs 2,400,000 is taxed @ 10%. However, if the annual salary increases just for Rs 1,000 from last slab of Rs 4,800,000, the same additional amount of only Rs 1,000 will fetch average rate of only 3.75% as against earlier slab which is being taxed at 6.25%. As a consequence a taxpayer may reduce his/her tax liability to the extent of Rs 119,850, just by increasing and offering a petty amount of Rs 1,000 as taxable income in the last slab, working of Waheed Shahzad Butt added.
As per newly introduced Income Tax Amendment Ordinance, 2018 following slabs have been notified by the lawmakers: Waheed Butt said that quite surprisingly it appears that lawmakers responsible for issuing the instance Income Tax Amendment Ordinance, 2018 have not considered the slabs for disabled persons and senior citizens. When the basic threshold has been enhanced to Rs 1,200,000 as below the taxable limit liable to tax then what is the fun to restrict the limit of tax reduction for disabled persons and senior citizens at Rs 1,000,000.
Tax computation mechanism that militates against the principles of horizontal and vertical equity clearly violates the Articles 4 and 25 of the Constitution. Being arbitrary, unreasonable, unjust and discriminatory, such a treatment is tantamount to maladministration and maltreatment with the innocent and most compliant taxpayers of the country (salaried class), Waheed added.
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S. No Taxable income Rate of tax
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(1) (2) (3)
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1 Where the taxable income does not exceed Rs 1,200,000 0%
2 Where the taxable income exceeds Rs 1,200,000 but does not exceed Rs 2,400,000 5% of the amount exceeding
Rs 1,200,000
3 Where the taxable income exceeds Rs 2,400,000 but does not exceed Rs 4,800,000 Rs 60,000 + 10% of the amount
exceeding Rs 2,400,000
4 Where the taxable income exceeds Rs 4,800,000 Rs 180,000 + 15% of the amount
exceeding Rs 48,000,000
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