The Pakistan Hosiery Manufacturers and Exporters Association (PHMA) chairman Dr Khurram Anwar Khawaja demanded that government should clear all the verified sales tax refunds of exporters (under the PM Package) before the end of its tenure as the shifting of this burden to the interim government will cause frustration among the exporters.
Dr Khurram said that billions of rupees against previous Drawback of Local Taxes & Levies (DLTL) Order 2009 since 2011; Incremental DLTL Order 2014-15 since June 2015; Incremental DLTL Order 2015-16 since April 2016; Incremental DLTL Order 2016-17 since April 2017 and DDT under PM Export Package 2017 of exporters are pending with the present government causing liquidity problems to the exporters in keeping up their export commitment, which must be released before May 31 to streamline the cash flow.
He also said that GSP window had opened tremendous opportunities by way of inflow of abundant export orders which the industry would not be able to execute if liquidity problem of the industry is not resolved at the earliest. In a statement issued here on Wednesday he said that government should appreciate the role of value-added apparel sector for its potential to harvest maximum benefits of GSP Plus, providing mass employment to the jobless population of the country.
Dr Khurram Anwar Khawaja said the benefits of the renewed GSP Plus status can only be harvested by maximum value-addition in finished products rather than exporting only raw materials, which cannot be possible without relaxation in import policies. He urged that the government to immediately clear the verified duty drawback tax claims submitted to the Federal Board of Revenue under the Prime Minister's export package before the expiry of current government term. He said that verified sales tax refunds of billions are stuck up, which should be cleared by the present government before May 31, as handing over this matter to the interim government would cause further delay, creating hurdles in exports promotion.
He demanded the government to accord priority to exports over imports. He proposed that separate examination areas of exports consignments for inspection of goods at Terminals must be allocated. Dr Khurram urged the government to take steps to abolish all the duties and taxes imposed on the polyester yarn, enabling the knitwear and sportswear industry to compete with the international market and to earn valuable foreign exchange amidst historic trade deficit of the country.
He also demanded to simplify the process of DTRE allowing the garment stitching units - manufacturers-cum-exporters to import yarn and raw material for manufacturing goods meant for export.
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