ISLAMABAD: The government has decided to restructure tax collection and divide it into two institutions (FBR and Federal Board of Customs (FBC)) taking into account the possible possibilities.
30 thousand manpower will be required for this division. The Federal Board of Revenue under the Inland Revenue Services will be responsible for the collection of Income Tax and Federal Excise Duty (FED) while the FBC will look after customs-related matters.
An IMF team that visited Pakistan recently suggested setting up a National Tax Authority in the medium term, but this was not possible as it was difficult to convince the provinces to collect taxes under one umbrella under a unified system.
In a high-level meeting presided over by Caretaker Finance Minister Dr. Shamshad Akhtar, various possibilities were examined in this regard. For restructuring, amendments will have to be made in the laws which cannot be done under the Caretaker Government.
