Daily Times

KARACHI: In a bid to launch FIRs against unregistered businesses, the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) is considering to establish Intelligence, Investigation & Prosecution cell in Broadening of Tax Base (BTB) Zone, Daily times learnt on Monday.

The FBR has initiated a countrywide crackdown against unregistered manufacturing units to bring these units into the tax net to overcome the loss to national exchequer.

The fedearl tax authority is devising an action plan to strengthen the fight against tax evasion and in this connection formation of Intelligence, Investigation & Prosecution cell in BTB Zone is under consideration , said sources.

The specialised teams of the FBR are conducting a major operation against unregistered manufacturing units across country while the BTB zone of RTO II Karachi has also sped up the drive against unregistered manufacturing units in all industrial areas of Karachi, sources revealed.

In the month of April, BTB zone RTO-II Karachi, under the leadership of Commissioner Inland Revenue Shazia Memon, has made several raids on unregistered businesses and recovered millions in sales tax.

As per sources, the tax raids have been primarily made on departmental stores and catering services under u/s 175 of Income Tax Ordinance (ITO) 2001 and 38 of Sales Tax Act 1990.

As a result, several new businesses have been registered in income tax in Lyari Town, Liaquatabad Town and North Nazimabad town while as many new schools have been come under tax net and registered in Nazimabad area, sources revealed.

Sources in the federal bureau told this scribe that the BTB zone of RTO II Karachi is working aggressively to bring unregistered businesses under tax net and formation of Intelligence, Investigation & Prosecution cell will give more powers to the unit. “On the non-cooperation of unregistered business, a case will be filed against it under u/s 175 of ITO 2001 and 38 of Sales Tax Act 1990. If the investigation cell is formed, several FIRs against non-cooperative businesses are ready to be registered while at least four FIRS will be launched in July, 2018”.

The FBR established a special BTB Unit in Karachi to identify tax evaders in the commercial and financial hub of the country. The DG BTB is Tanvir Malik, a man behind formation of Intelligence & Investigation-IR wing in FBR.

Published in Daily Times, May 15^th 2018.