The Directorate General Intelligence and Investigation (Inland Revenue) hasintensified the countrywide action against tax evaders and fraudsters(individuals, AOPs, and corporate entities) involved in evasion of SalesTax, Income Tax and Federal Excise Duty.
In this regard, Directorates of Intelligence and Investigation (InlandRevenue) has expedited the crackdown against tax fraudsters based oncredible evidence and following due process of law based on legalprovisions laid down in various tax statutes.
Directorate of Intelligence and Investigation-IR, Islamabad has detected abig case of sales tax evasion. As per the intelligence gathering, one ofthe Islamabad-based plywood manufacturing unit was involved in the evasionof sales tax by suppressing its taxable supplies in monthly sales taxreturns. Pursuant to the information and in order to safeguard the publicrevenue, a raid was conducted and premises of the said unit were searchedunder section 38 and 40 of the Sales Tax Act, 1990. During the search,various records including invoices, receipt books, CPUs have been impoundedand its scrutiny is underway.
Furthermore, two raids were conducted by the Islamabad Directorate on 22ndDecember against two un-registered businesses located in Chakwal involvedin huge tax evasion. The record has been impounded and its scrutiny isunderway. It is expected that the quantum of tax involved will be inhundreds of millions in the three raids conducted by the IslamabadDirectorate.
In a similar move, a campaign against smuggled, duty non-paid/illicit andcounterfeit cigarettes, in compliance with FBR’s special directives dated11th December 2020 to “deploy maximum resources for control of the menaceof illegal and injurious cigarettes”, the Inland Revenue Intelligence &Investigation (I&I-IR) Directorate, Faisalabad has seized 426 cartons(4,260,000 sticks) from traders in Faisalabad and Sargodha, by conductingthree different actions in exercise of powers under section 38 of the SalesTax Act, 1990 and Rule 62 to 67 of the Federal Excise Rules, 2005.
The seized consignments are prima facie counterfeited/non-duty paid and areaccordingly taken into custody in the presence of the proprietors and therepresentatives of the local Press Club. Estimated tax and duties evaded onthe recovered merchandise in all three cases may run in Multi-MillionRupees.
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The Chairman Federal Board of Revenue and the Director General(Intelligence & Investigation-Inland Revenue), held meetings on this issueand the resolve of the government, FBR has accordingly been conveyed downthe line as counterfeit cigarettes are not only extremely harmful from thepoint of view of health but at the same time causes huge losses to thenational exchequer in terms of evasion of duties and taxes.
In the drive against the illicit tobacco trade, the Directorate I&I-IR,Peshawar having jurisdiction over KPK Province, has taken multiple actionsagainst the trade of counterfeit and non-duty paid cigarettes. Thesurveillance squad of the Peshawar Directorate, on receipt of credibleinformation, intercepted a truck in Swabi and recovered from it 20 cartonsof filter rods having no relevant documents in support of payment of exciseduty and taxes. On further inquiry, the team raided godown from where thefilter rods were loaded in the truck and 19 more cartons of filter rodswere confiscated for lack of having documentary evidence of payment ofduty/taxes.
A total of 39 cartons of non-duty paid filter rods were recovered which aresufficient for the production of 9,126,000 sticks of cigarettes (913cartons) with anticipated duty/tax evasion of more than Rs. 25,000,000/- inaddition to evasion of duty of Rs. 1,521,000/- being payable at theclearance stage. In another action, more than 50 Cartons of counterfeitcigarettes were confiscated from two passenger vehicles in Peshawar.
