The Law and Justice Division has observed that the Central Board of Revenue (CBR) would not be taken as converted into the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) till the relevant provisions of the FBR Act, 2007 are notified in the official gazette.
Sources told Business Recorder on Friday that the board had started using the name of FBR after 2007-08 budget. In July 2007, Law and Justice Division gave its legal opinion on the conversion CBR. On Law Division instructions, the Revenue Division is again using the name CBR for carrying out day-to-day operations.
The Law Division had informed the CBR that by virtue of sub-section 3 of section 1 of the FBR Act 2007, the nomenclature of CBR has been changed to FBR while the substantive provisions will be governed by the CBR Act, 1924 unless the provisions of the FBR Act, 2007 comes into force through notification in the official gazette.
It said that ''Board means the CBR established under the CBR Act, 1924 (IV of 1924) and on the commencement of the FBR Act, 2007, the FBR established under section 3 thereof''. Therefore, when the provisions of the FBR Act, 2007 are operational the board would be in a position to use new name, the Law Division added.
Sources said that the FBR Act, 2007 would now be come into force from September 15, 2007. The jurisdiction and powers of all FBR members need to be defined afresh for proper implementation of the FBR Act, 2007. On the first stage, a notification would be issued for the enforcement of the FBR Act. Later, it would be gradually implemented in view of legal requirements of the board.
According to the board, the Act relating to establishment of the Federal Board of Revenue, 2007 has been passed by the Parliament, but CBR Act, 1924 has not yet been repealed because the provision of the relevant section has not been made operative in view of Sub-section (3) of Section 1 of the FBR Act, 2007. It is important to mention that the Ministry of Finance had issued an SRO.178(I)/67 for enforcement of CBR Rules 1967.