ISLAMABAD [Pakistan], Pakistan's telecom operators on Friday agreed to start the manual blocking process in small batches of tax evaders, ending a week-long standoff over implementation of the tax machinery drive to broaden the tax base. Went. The agreement was reached after the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) held important meetings with the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority, Dawn reported.
) and telecom operators have to implement Income Tax General Order No. 1 issued under Section 11B of the Income Tax Ordinance 2001. On April 30, the FBR released a comprehensive list of 506,671 individuals who failed to file their tax returns for 2023. Along with imposing fine, the SIM of their mobile phone will be blocked immediately. However, telecom providers objected to this decision and delayed its implementation, which was done under an Act of Parliament.An official announcement issued by the FBR said that after several deliberations, the telecom operators have agreed to start the manual blockchain process in small batches. As Dawn reports, the systems are fully equipped to automate this. In this regard, the first batch, comprising 5,000 non-filers, was reported to telecom operators on Friday for non-compliance of SIM blocking. Subsequent batches will be sent to them daily. Apart from this, telecom operators have also started sending messages regarding SIM blocking to non-filers for information, FBR has held important meetings with it.And telecom operators across Pakistan have been asked to ensure effective implementation of ITGO. According to Dawn report, the meeting discussed implementing measures to deactivate mobile phone SIMs of non-filers for the tax year 2023. Several discussions were held to streamline the process and ensure compliance with tax rules. This collaboration underlines FBR's commitment towards telecom operators to maintain tax regulations and ensure compliance among taxpayers. This is an important step towards enhancing the tax collection and enforcement mechanism.The FBR appreciates the cooperation of all stakeholders involved in these discussions and looks forward to continued collaboration to strengthen tax compliance in Pakistan, the announcement said Dawn reported that the FBR has identified 2.4 million potential taxpayers Who were not present in the tax rolls. Later notices were issued to these persons. The FBR has selected over 0.5 million out of 2 million individuals for SIM blocking based on one of the criteria: They must have declared taxable income in one of the last three years and these individuals must have filed returns. For tax year 2023. has not been. According to the Active Taxpayers List (ATL), the FBR received 4.2 million taxpayers till March 1, compared to 3.8 million returns in the same period last year. This shows a marginal increase during the period under review.In tax year 2022, the FBR received 5.9 million income tax returns.
) and telecom operators have to implement Income Tax General Order No. 1 issued under Section 11B of the Income Tax Ordinance 2001. On April 30, the FBR released a comprehensive list of 506,671 individuals who failed to file their tax returns for 2023. Along with imposing fine, the SIM of their mobile phone will be blocked immediately. However, telecom providers objected to this decision and delayed its implementation, which was done under an Act of Parliament.An official announcement issued by the FBR said that after several deliberations, the telecom operators have agreed to start the manual blockchain process in small batches. As Dawn reports, the systems are fully equipped to automate this. In this regard, the first batch, comprising 5,000 non-filers, was reported to telecom operators on Friday for non-compliance of SIM blocking. Subsequent batches will be sent to them daily. Apart from this, telecom operators have also started sending messages regarding SIM blocking to non-filers for information, FBR has held important meetings with it.And telecom operators across Pakistan have been asked to ensure effective implementation of ITGO. According to Dawn report, the meeting discussed implementing measures to deactivate mobile phone SIMs of non-filers for the tax year 2023. Several discussions were held to streamline the process and ensure compliance with tax rules. This collaboration underlines FBR's commitment towards telecom operators to maintain tax regulations and ensure compliance among taxpayers. This is an important step towards enhancing the tax collection and enforcement mechanism.The FBR appreciates the cooperation of all stakeholders involved in these discussions and looks forward to continued collaboration to strengthen tax compliance in Pakistan, the announcement said Dawn reported that the FBR has identified 2.4 million potential taxpayers Who were not present in the tax rolls. Later notices were issued to these persons. The FBR has selected over 0.5 million out of 2 million individuals for SIM blocking based on one of the criteria: They must have declared taxable income in one of the last three years and these individuals must have filed returns. For tax year 2023. has not been. According to the Active Taxpayers List (ATL), the FBR received 4.2 million taxpayers till March 1, compared to 3.8 million returns in the same period last year. This shows a marginal increase during the period under review.In tax year 2022, the FBR received 5.9 million income tax returns.
