Islamabad: In a strategic move, the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has unveiled plans to streamline and consolidate financial data and economic transactions across 145 organizations. This comprehensive integration encompasses federal government and semi-autonomous departments, provincial government entities, financial institutions, and private organizations. The primary objective behind this initiative is to enhance the documentation of the economy and expand the tax base, marking a significant step towards fiscal transparency and economic development.
The FBR took a notable step on Tuesday by issuing SRO 1771(I)/2023, aiming to introduce draft amendments in the Income Tax Rules 2002.
This move by the FBR signifies a commitment to documenting economic transactions conducted by 145 organizations. The objective is to accurately assess citizens’ actual income and tax potential, ensuring the collection of the rightful amount of taxes from them. This proactive measure aligns with the FBR’s broader strategy to enhance fiscal accountability and promote a fair and transparent tax system.
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In a proactive move, a senior official from the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) highlighted the objective behind the integration of economic transactions. The aim is to document transactions involving the exchange or transfer of ownership of assets, goods, or services with economic value between individuals. To achieve this, the FBR has instructed 145 organizations to integrate with the FBR’s “real-time accessed data analysis repository (RADAR)” for seamless access to information and databases.
Among the organizations directed to provide real-time access are significant entities such as the State Bank of Pakistan, commercial banks, Pakistan Stock Exchange, investment banks, Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs), micro-finance banks, and various government authorities. The integration process is expected to be completed by January 15, 2024, ensuring real-time access to information regarding economic transactions. The “RADAR” is a specialized IT platform designed for this purpose, facilitating the exchange of information between the FBR and integrated organizations.
To maintain transparency and accuracy, the FBR has outlined stringent measures, emphasizing the responsibility of integrated organizations to provide true, correct, authenticated, and complete information. Any tampering with the IT platform or refusal to integrate with the RADAR, as well as providing false or incomplete information, may result in penalties and/or prosecution for the principal officers of the organizations.
Furthermore, the FBR plans to conduct periodic inspections of integrated organizations to verify compliance with the established rules. This comprehensive approach underscores the FBR’s commitment to fostering a transparent and accountable financial environment through real-time data access and stringent regulatory measures.
FBR notifies list of entities to be integrated with its ‘RADAR’