The government in the budget 2004-05 has abolished the turnover tax/enrolment scheme and rationalised the exemption threshold by raising the ceiling to Rs 5.0 million for both manufacturers and retailers which will benefit to over 40,000 taxpayers.
Syed Mumtaz Ahmed, Superintendent of Sales Tax and Central Excise Rawalpindi, told APP that in the Budget 2004-05, as a measure to facilitate taxpayers, the government has abolished the turnover tax/enrolment scheme and rationalised the exemption thresholds by raising the ceiling to Rs 5.0 million for both manufacturers and retailers.
He added that consequently with the coming into effect of the Finance Act, 2004-05, on July 1, 2004, over 40,000 enrolled and registered manufacturers, retailers shall no longer be required to be registered and discharge their liabilities as postulated under the provisions of the Sales Tax Act, 1990.
In order to save the collectorate from investing resources in conducting exhaustive exercise of de-registration and to safeguard the taxpayers from unnecessary hassles of de-registration requirements, the government has taken various measures.
Highlighting the measures, he said that under the Finance Act, 2004-05, all the retailers and manufacturers, who were previously enrolled, shall stand de-registered with effect from July 1, 2004.
He further said that all the retailers and manufacturers whose annual turnover during the last 12 months is below Rs 5.0 million, but were registered under section 14 of the Sales Tax Act, 1990 at their own accord, shall also stand de-registered with effect from July 1, 2004.
Syed Mumtaz Ahmed said that all such persons shall no longer be required to maintain record as prescribed under Chapter IV of the Act and file returns under Chapter V thereof.
He added that a dedicated cell for de-registration shall be set up in each collectorate for speedy disposal of cases and following procedure of audit for de-registration shall be strictly followed:-
(i) all such registered/enrolled retailers and manufacturers shall be immune from audit prescribed under rule 10 of Sales Tax Rules, 2004, for the transactions relating to the tax period prior to July 2004, if they had filed their returns as provided under the relevant provisions of the Act and rules made there-under; and
(ii) in case, a registered/enrolled retailers or manufacturer did not file tax return for any tax period prior to July, 2004, there shall be no audit prior to de-registration, provided such retailer or manufacturer files tax return for that tax period-(s) by August 15, 2004.