The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has prioritized the facilitation of taxpayers and has implemented a lot of reforms accordingly, and significant improvement has been noted as a result of this reformation process.
It has taken measures reducing human interaction, as well as the simplification of tax statutes and tax filing procedures through automation, integrity management, the enforcement of a tax code, and policy measures to boost revenue.
The FBR is also focused on promoting exports through an increase in business activity, the speedy payment of refunds and drawbacks, and better delivery of services.
These reforms have resulted in the FBR exceeding the seven-month revenue target for FY 2020–21 by collecting Rs. 2,570 billion against the target of Rs. 2,550 billion. This target has been achieved despite the issuance of 80 percent more refunds in comparison with same period last FY (Rs. 129 billion vs. Rs. 69 billion for the last year). This has helped the business community in reducing the cost of doing business and providing working capital for investment.
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A special portal has also been created to manage taxpayers’ complaints and to provide feedback, and a Large Taxpayers Office (LTO) has been opened in Multan to facilitate large taxpayers.
Moreover, taxpayer registration for Sales Tax purposes has been enabled on the system (ICT-based Sales Tax survey).
Simultaneously, on the Customs side, an online import duty calculator has been enabled on WeBOC for the importers/customs agents in order to find duty/taxes without the filing of Goods Declaration.
The Authorized Economic Operator (AEO) Program has been launched for trusted trade partners as part of the Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) under the World Trade Organization (WTO).
The FBR has designed simplified income tax returns for individuals and small and medium enterprises (with turnover less than Rs. 10 million).
The auto-calculation and Phase 1 of the pre-filling of some information have been enabled for individual taxpayers. Additionally, Phase 1 of the automated income tax refunds has been enabled.
The capability to file appeals through the system has been provided via the e-Appeals module. The automation of Sales Tax refunds via FASTER has been further improved. Similarly, the processing and payment of export duty drawbacks have also been automated.
To broaden the tax base, data from the financial services sector, telcos, utility companies, provincial revenue authorities, local development authorities, provincial excise and taxation authorities, local housing authorities, Securities and Exchange Commission, NADRA, and Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) is being received and integrated to provide a full 360-degree view of all the taxpayers.
A designated portal called Maloomat TaxRay has been launched for taxpayers to view what information the FBR holds about them. Moreover, the systems used for Prosecution, Appellate, and Alternate Dispute Resolution systems have been strengthened, revitalized, and automated.
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Additionally, on the Customs side, the Anti-Smuggling and Confiscation of goods portal has been enabled for data collection and analysis, and the FBR’s Integrity Management Mechanism has been strengthened.
The FBR Head Office and field formations have been restructured to improve efficiency, and the Customs Duty concessions and exemptions regime continues to be reviewed and simplified in collaboration with the tax policy board to further improve ease of doing business.
Another positive development has been noted in the number of duty drawback claims processed via the Automated Export Duty Drawback payment system.
Since its official launch in end-December (as of 15 January 2021), 74 percent of all claims (55,790 out of 75,345) have been automated while 71 percent of the amount has been remitted.
