PTI government may face setback to bring back $200 billion looted money from Switzerland
Shares
ISLAMABAD - PM Imran Khan led government may face a setback in bringing back looted money from Switzerland.
Switzerland has yet to ratify the revised convention on Avoidance of Double Taxation with Pakistan, which is delaying the exchange of information between the two countries.
The exchange of information between Pakistan and Switzerland was due to start from January 2018 under convention on Avoidance of Double Taxation between two countries. So far, the exchange of information has not been started between the two countries, as Swiss government has yet to ratify the agreement. Pakistan has completed internal procedures for ratification of the agreement, said an official of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR). He further said that government’s departments do not have exact amount, which is stashed in Swiss banks.
In 2014, the then finance minister Ishaq Dar had informed parliament in writing that Pakistanis had stashed about $200 billion in Swiss banks.
Pakistan’s new government has announced to form a task force to scrutinize the whole details and would recommend ways and means to repatriate stashed amount running into billions of dollars.
“First decision of Prime Minister Imran Khan’s cabinet is to form a task force to bring the laundered money back to Pakistan,” said finance minister in a media talk the other day. He further said that task force has been given two weeks time to present the strategy to bring back the looted money to the country.
The revised treaty on the Avoidance of Double Taxation would not cover past transactions, which means that Pakistan could not do anything in bringing $200 billion what former Finance Minister claimed. “The scope of the revised treaty is limited to the transactions that would be carried out after Swiss government ratifies the agreement,” he added.
