The Senate Committee on Information and Telecommunication has been informed that the government wants to register freelancers in the country over fears of money laundering.
During a recent meeting of the Senate Committee on Information and Telecommunication, chaired by Senator Kauda Babar, officials from the Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication informed the committee that the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) and State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) fear that un-registered freelancers can be a potential source of money laundering.
The members of the committee expressed their concerns regarding the registration of freelancers. The members argued that instead of facilitating freelancers, the government was creating problems for them.
On the contrary, Senator Afnan Ullah Khan said that the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) had also raised objections regarding international payments to freelancers. He added that there was a possibility of terror financing through unregistered freelancers. The senator recommended engaging the fintech industry for safe and documented transfer of payments.
Member Information Technology, Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication, Syed Junaid Imam, informed the meeting that the Ministry of Commerce has prepared a policy for registration and facilitation of payment gateways in Pakistan.
Imam informed the committee that PayPal and other payment gateways have several issues related to entry into Pakistan’s market. He further said that a committee was formed under the Finance Division to look into the issue of registration of international payment gateways. The committee was given the mandate to facilitate international as well as local payment gateways.
In this regard, the Ministry of Commerce has prepared a policy for the registration and facilitation of gateways. The Ministry will submit the policy to the Ministry of Finance next week. The policy will be presented to the federal cabinet after vetting from the Finance Ministry. He said he is hopeful that the federal government will approve the policy within one month.
Bandar ke hath me jab ustra ata h to sb k sath yehe hota h
What? What to register? Freelancers get clients from several sources. Income comes through several sources such as Western Union, Payoneer, Bank Transfer, Exchange Companies, etc. There is no PayPal in Pakistan. Instead of facilitating us, Govt. wants to hinder our work and income. It is like a match in monkey hand as Ali describes it as well.