PAC Asks FBR &PTA About the Details of Tax Collection on Mobile Cards in Fata &GB

The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) pursued details from the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) and Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) about accumulating sales tax withheld on the mobile cards of the telecom companies in Fata and Gilgit-Baltistan.

PAC Asks FBR &PTA About the Details of Tax Collection on Mobile Cards in Fata &GB

The PAC meeting was chaired by Syed Khursheed Shah. The matter of inference of various taxes on mobile cards by different telecom companies operating in the country and the mechanism to monitor that deduction placed in the national exchequer was observed.

Also Read: Flaws Persist in Taxation System for Telecom Companies

Chairman FBR Nisar Muhammad Khan, informed the PAC that 14% withholding tax was levied on a card of Rs.100. Whereas 19.5% tax was imposed in the head of the federal excise duty with 10% service charges so the consumer gets Rs.87.75 balance on Rs.100 mobile card in Islamabad. He informed that the FBR only charges FED from the customers of Islamabad.

On the question of proposition of the forensic scrutiny of the mobile transactions, the FBR chief informed the committee that they were in talks with the PTA on this subject.

The FBR chairman also informed that mobile cards were made outside Pakistan. The role of the FBR takeoff after activation and scratching of these cards.

Nisar also said that the FBR has retrieved over Rs.43 billion in the head of withholding tax. Rs.8 billion was alleged by post-paid and Rs.6 billion from pre-paid customers and through this Rs.14 billion had been accommodated.

The PAC Chairman interrogated who is gathering sales tax and where it was going. Specially in those areas where no provincial revenue boards were operating. The areas included Fata, Gilgit-Baltistan, Azad Jummu and Kashmir and other places where the sales tax laws were not enforced.

 “It should be told which department is collecting the tax and where it is going.”

PAC Chairman questioned.

Officials of the FBR and PTA ensured the task force that they will go into the issue with the telecom companies and will report. Chairman Nadra suggested the committee to conduct forensic audit of the transactions of mobile cards.

Also Read: PTA Asks CMOs to Explain Differences in On-net, Off-net Tariffs