Lesco and SNGPL consumers: RTO Lahore issues 63011 sales tax registration letters/notices

The Regional Tax Office-II, Lahore has issued 63011 sales tax registration letters/notices to industrial and commercial connection holders of LESCO and SNGPL. Chief Commissioner, RTO-II, Lahore Ahmad Shuja Khan said that influx of new sales tax registrations by employing LESCO and SNGPL data is the prime objective. The department will proceed to disconnections of utilities in case of non-compliant taxpayers.
It may be noted that the FBR is relentlessly conducting a registration drive at the national level. Moreover, FBR has gathered data of 333,671 employees of Federal and Provincial departments including hospitals, educational institutions, banks, WASA, SBP and Railways which is being examined to identify non-filers as well as unregistered employees. It is pertinent to mention that FBR conducted a series of workshops to educate and galvanize employees of provincial departments and as a result, 75,000 more returns of income have been received in the tax year 2018 aggregating to 451,313.
FBR also shared information regarding bank accounts being maintained by unregistered taxpayers and has initiated proceedings through issuing 6,943 notices till date.
Punjab Police shared data of 10,838 rental properties in Lahore District. Enforcement of returns from non-filers who own the rented properties has also been initiated.
Likewise, out of 942 brick kiln units existing in the outskirts of Lahore i.e Districts of Kasur, Sheikupura and Nankana Sahib, sales tax registration notices have been issued to 436 units. Thereafter, monthly sales tax returns as per fixed sales tax regime introduced in Finance Act, 2019 shall be enforced.
Another drive regarding the identification of vendors of smuggled goods has been initiated by FBR. Chief Commissioner Inland Revenue, RTO-II, Lahore, Ahmad Shuja Khan asserted that profiling of import data of taxpayers existing in the jurisdiction of RTO-II, Lahore has been completed and the joint team in collaboration with Customs has successfully conducted awareness visits. The main objective of this drive is to discourage the influx and sale of smuggled goods in the open market.