jokingjustice
Citizen
11 August 2024
Out of 5 lacs SIMs of non filers to be blocked, 230,000 stand blocked.
2. I have a pre-paid SIM since 25-30 years. It is taken with me or my family to use while in Pakistan and is brought back rather than on every visit subscribing a new one. Almost every Pakistani living abroad specially the families have a SIM to keep a liaison with the family outside or within airports in Pakistan for “obvious” safety worries.
3. Since my above SIM here in Bahrain is out of Mobile device, I am not aware of if it has already gone dead or soon will be.
4. Four years back a news item appeared that the Federal Tax Ombudsman had LAUNCHED PROBE into “UNLAWFUL” compulsion on non-residents to file returns. The Secretary Revenue Division informed me that under Section so and so, and that and that, non residents are not obliged to file their returns except when they had any income in Pakistan like rent income from property, bank profit, shares dividends etc.
5. The Secretary forwarded a copy of his this note to me to the Federal Ombudsman. The Federal Tax Ombudsman forwarded me this, thus, in technical terms silently conveying he was satisfied with the reply and contention of the Revenue Department. This raised a think point – what happened to the PROBE and the UNLAWFUL COMPULSION? Probe and Unlawful Compulsions are very significant and seriously meaningful words. These two significant words press picked up from the press release of the tax ombudsmae. This raised not just one thin question what happened to the Probe and Unlawful Compulsion but also created a more thin question viz “was the Tax Ombudsman not aware of this provision of Revenue/Tax himself” and only came to know when Secretary Revenue updated? This very thin question flashed an old memory. Mr. Justice Shafiur Rehman, another God fearing real ombudsman, addressing the senior executives in NIPA stated that it was unfortunately officials are posted in his office without any training. He explained these officials don’t get training and realization that they had to change their behavior to public issues sitting in the ombudsman office but they continue feel sitting in their parent bureaucratic might offices. It is my experience these officials if, for example, are given complaint against post office don’t had no touch with the working of the post office, if complainant against national savings, they lacked even the proper purview the purchase of national savings organisations. Last year I issued a cheque in favour of PMG Karachi. He amended with his own hand name of payee and amount and sent me for signature. It was an irregular and unlawful. Even a bank manager can’t make any change. The Legal Consultant Federal Ombudsman Karachi directed me to comply the instruction of PMG rather than taking note of illegal exercise of PMG.
6. My daughter is working here in Bahrain. She has no property income, no share dividends except for a Rs. 6 thousand approx. a year profit from her Savings Account in Pakistan. The joke is the government is never tired boosting that the remittances and investment from Overseas Pakistanis is exempt from any tax but withholding tax @ 30% from this profit of Rs. 6 thousand is deducted her being a non filer despite her annual income remaining below Rs. 6 lac exempting her from return. When she is a non-resident not required to file a return and does not fall under the minimum limit of becoming a tax payee why
then she be treated as non filer @ 30%. If the words coming from the mouths of the Governments are true then there should be no deduction of withholding tax at all from her savings account. This, to this old, is as remittances are exempt for any levies and my daughter’s this saving is all her remittance from abroad, provided the Tax Ombudsman has any real God fearing. Knowing well the account holder was a non resident, there should be no deduction at all of withholding tax.
7. My daughter, an Overseas Pakistani, keeps purchasing Online from Pakistan good quantity of fancy dresses which purchases include withholding tax charged by the sender supplier. She along with her kids and husband few months back in Pakistan during stay frequently purchased costly baby milk, dresses, gifts, from big super markets eatables, fast food outlets, paying withholding tax at each stage. Thus against her Pakistani annual income of Rs. 6,000 max. she paid during her stay in Pakistan 30% non filer withholding tax and some Rs. 10,000 on different online purchases against which she holds no receipts as in Pakistan, thanks to FBR officials, hardly anyone issues proper receipt except for Cash Register Print Outs which bear no name of purchaser paying withholding tax.
8. It is too easy to say she can claim refund of all this withholding tax estimated Rs, 15,000 plus paid but the issue is for this refund in addition to lot problem in copying and attaching some 500 receipts, on “malik riaz brand wheels” with her refund application, and an additional approx. sum of some Rs. 40-50 thousand for a tax-black-coat. The senior writer, intellectual and anchor Mujeeb-ur-Rehman Shami two years back in his talk show said that filing of tax return form was so complicated that one of his friend himself was a Chartered Accountant from UK but for filing a return in Lahore hires other Chartered Account on a huge fee. What has the Tax Ombudsman done in this regard viz making filing easy simple? Nil?
9. This old started his professional life in 1966 after college joining Income Tax Department Karachi. Mentally, I could not adjust myself to the atmosphere there and after one-and-a-half year I left it. The Income Tax Return Form used to be one-double-sheet on a very cheap quality paper distributed free from my office. On the last date of submission, I had to sit upto 08.00 pm to receive these Returns. Many came, asked for a Form, filled up then and there and submitted with a cheque in the amount they themselves tabulated. And that was all.
10. The Federal Tax Ombudsman is the President of Form of Pakistan Ombudsman established after the World Bank donated a huge for reformation of ombudsman system in Pakistan. He has published in his newsletter photo of a single-side single-page hand filled Tax Return by the Founder of Pakistan Qaid Azam. After appreciating this simple single-page Return, a natural logical question is as the Tax Ombudsman what he practically reformed, did and achieved in making the present time Tax Return Form simple for everyone for just filling of which, in the words of Mujeeb ur Rehman, high cost tax-black coat is needed?
11. On FBR move to block SIMs most of the writers are of the opinion that major of non filers are not habitual tax defaulter and wished to pay but the too complicated procedure and expense involved with it discouraged them.
12. Recently in a Forum a senior tax consultant revealed that Overseas Pakistanis desiring to file a return, it is mandatory they have a “pre-registered” local Pakistani mobile number to enter into the Form without which it can’t be submitted. Logical argument is an Overseas Pakistani lives abroad, he can’t keep a mobile alive 24/7 with a Pakistani SIM for tax purpose as international call charges are too high. When he is abroad why should, wisdom demands his mobile should not be that of abroad on which he could be contacted any time.
13. Amongst many others there is also, if not a slogan of the Government but an understanding given that property (houses) of Overseas Pakistanis are exempt from property tax. I am too old acute diabetic specially after Covid attack three years back hence unable to trace but surely is with me in the old junk, a letter to me from the Department concerned that there was no such exemption in the law.
Regards.
Out of 5 lacs SIMs of non filers to be blocked, 230,000 stand blocked.
2. I have a pre-paid SIM since 25-30 years. It is taken with me or my family to use while in Pakistan and is brought back rather than on every visit subscribing a new one. Almost every Pakistani living abroad specially the families have a SIM to keep a liaison with the family outside or within airports in Pakistan for “obvious” safety worries.
3. Since my above SIM here in Bahrain is out of Mobile device, I am not aware of if it has already gone dead or soon will be.
4. Four years back a news item appeared that the Federal Tax Ombudsman had LAUNCHED PROBE into “UNLAWFUL” compulsion on non-residents to file returns. The Secretary Revenue Division informed me that under Section so and so, and that and that, non residents are not obliged to file their returns except when they had any income in Pakistan like rent income from property, bank profit, shares dividends etc.
5. The Secretary forwarded a copy of his this note to me to the Federal Ombudsman. The Federal Tax Ombudsman forwarded me this, thus, in technical terms silently conveying he was satisfied with the reply and contention of the Revenue Department. This raised a think point – what happened to the PROBE and the UNLAWFUL COMPULSION? Probe and Unlawful Compulsions are very significant and seriously meaningful words. These two significant words press picked up from the press release of the tax ombudsmae. This raised not just one thin question what happened to the Probe and Unlawful Compulsion but also created a more thin question viz “was the Tax Ombudsman not aware of this provision of Revenue/Tax himself” and only came to know when Secretary Revenue updated? This very thin question flashed an old memory. Mr. Justice Shafiur Rehman, another God fearing real ombudsman, addressing the senior executives in NIPA stated that it was unfortunately officials are posted in his office without any training. He explained these officials don’t get training and realization that they had to change their behavior to public issues sitting in the ombudsman office but they continue feel sitting in their parent bureaucratic might offices. It is my experience these officials if, for example, are given complaint against post office don’t had no touch with the working of the post office, if complainant against national savings, they lacked even the proper purview the purchase of national savings organisations. Last year I issued a cheque in favour of PMG Karachi. He amended with his own hand name of payee and amount and sent me for signature. It was an irregular and unlawful. Even a bank manager can’t make any change. The Legal Consultant Federal Ombudsman Karachi directed me to comply the instruction of PMG rather than taking note of illegal exercise of PMG.
6. My daughter is working here in Bahrain. She has no property income, no share dividends except for a Rs. 6 thousand approx. a year profit from her Savings Account in Pakistan. The joke is the government is never tired boosting that the remittances and investment from Overseas Pakistanis is exempt from any tax but withholding tax @ 30% from this profit of Rs. 6 thousand is deducted her being a non filer despite her annual income remaining below Rs. 6 lac exempting her from return. When she is a non-resident not required to file a return and does not fall under the minimum limit of becoming a tax payee why
then she be treated as non filer @ 30%. If the words coming from the mouths of the Governments are true then there should be no deduction of withholding tax at all from her savings account. This, to this old, is as remittances are exempt for any levies and my daughter’s this saving is all her remittance from abroad, provided the Tax Ombudsman has any real God fearing. Knowing well the account holder was a non resident, there should be no deduction at all of withholding tax.
7. My daughter, an Overseas Pakistani, keeps purchasing Online from Pakistan good quantity of fancy dresses which purchases include withholding tax charged by the sender supplier. She along with her kids and husband few months back in Pakistan during stay frequently purchased costly baby milk, dresses, gifts, from big super markets eatables, fast food outlets, paying withholding tax at each stage. Thus against her Pakistani annual income of Rs. 6,000 max. she paid during her stay in Pakistan 30% non filer withholding tax and some Rs. 10,000 on different online purchases against which she holds no receipts as in Pakistan, thanks to FBR officials, hardly anyone issues proper receipt except for Cash Register Print Outs which bear no name of purchaser paying withholding tax.
8. It is too easy to say she can claim refund of all this withholding tax estimated Rs, 15,000 plus paid but the issue is for this refund in addition to lot problem in copying and attaching some 500 receipts, on “malik riaz brand wheels” with her refund application, and an additional approx. sum of some Rs. 40-50 thousand for a tax-black-coat. The senior writer, intellectual and anchor Mujeeb-ur-Rehman Shami two years back in his talk show said that filing of tax return form was so complicated that one of his friend himself was a Chartered Accountant from UK but for filing a return in Lahore hires other Chartered Account on a huge fee. What has the Tax Ombudsman done in this regard viz making filing easy simple? Nil?
9. This old started his professional life in 1966 after college joining Income Tax Department Karachi. Mentally, I could not adjust myself to the atmosphere there and after one-and-a-half year I left it. The Income Tax Return Form used to be one-double-sheet on a very cheap quality paper distributed free from my office. On the last date of submission, I had to sit upto 08.00 pm to receive these Returns. Many came, asked for a Form, filled up then and there and submitted with a cheque in the amount they themselves tabulated. And that was all.
10. The Federal Tax Ombudsman is the President of Form of Pakistan Ombudsman established after the World Bank donated a huge for reformation of ombudsman system in Pakistan. He has published in his newsletter photo of a single-side single-page hand filled Tax Return by the Founder of Pakistan Qaid Azam. After appreciating this simple single-page Return, a natural logical question is as the Tax Ombudsman what he practically reformed, did and achieved in making the present time Tax Return Form simple for everyone for just filling of which, in the words of Mujeeb ur Rehman, high cost tax-black coat is needed?
11. On FBR move to block SIMs most of the writers are of the opinion that major of non filers are not habitual tax defaulter and wished to pay but the too complicated procedure and expense involved with it discouraged them.
12. Recently in a Forum a senior tax consultant revealed that Overseas Pakistanis desiring to file a return, it is mandatory they have a “pre-registered” local Pakistani mobile number to enter into the Form without which it can’t be submitted. Logical argument is an Overseas Pakistani lives abroad, he can’t keep a mobile alive 24/7 with a Pakistani SIM for tax purpose as international call charges are too high. When he is abroad why should, wisdom demands his mobile should not be that of abroad on which he could be contacted any time.
13. Amongst many others there is also, if not a slogan of the Government but an understanding given that property (houses) of Overseas Pakistanis are exempt from property tax. I am too old acute diabetic specially after Covid attack three years back hence unable to trace but surely is with me in the old junk, a letter to me from the Department concerned that there was no such exemption in the law.
Regards.
