Day: August 9, 2021

The computerized draw for the prizes of the customers of integrated tier-1 retailers will be held at the Federal Board Of Revenue (FBR) headquarters in the first week of every month starting from August 2021.

The FBR issued a procedure for the prize scheme through an S.R.0.1105(I)/2021 on Monday to amend the Sales Tax Rules, 2006.

The customers of the integrated tier-1 retailer, whose names and the computerized national identity card numbers (CNICs) are notified through an arbitrary computerized draw, will be entitled to prizes respective of their purchases from these big retailers.

Under the new scheme, the scheme will apply to the customers of the tier-1 retailers who have integrated their retail outlets with the board’s computerized system for the real-time reporting of sales and mystery shopping in respect of the verification of invoices from such retailers.

The customers will verify the electronically generated invoice of the integrated retailers either through a ‘tax asaan’ application or by sending an SMS to 9966. The application will notify the customer about the status of the invoice as either ‘verified’ or ‘unverified’.

In case of a verified invoice, the customer will furnish the following details only once to the online system, including name, CNIC, and mobile number. The names and CNICs of the customers will be included in the random computerized draw upon the fulfillment of the requirement.

In case of an unverified invoice, the customer will report the same through the system. The board will conduct an enquiry and will take appropriate action under the relevant provisions of the law.

The computerized draw for the prizes will be held in the first week of every month, starting from August 2021 at the FBR headquarters, and the invoices of the preceding month will be entered in the draw.

The winners of the draw will be required to perform biometric verification at the nearest e-sahulat facility of the NADRA and submit a scanned copy on the ‘tax assan’ application. After successful biometric verification, the winners will be required to provide their IBANs through the ‘tax asaan’ application, the FBR maintained.

The FBR has also issued a procedure for mystery shopping, according to which it will be conducted by a person or the firm duly authorized by the board.

The person or firm authorized by the board will carry out the mystery shopping on a random basis from the tier-1 retailers. The person or firm authorized by the board will verify the invoices from the online system of the FBR, and in case of a fake or invalid invoice, will report the matter to the board for necessary action as per the relevant provisions of the Sales Tax Act and the rules thereunder.

In case of a fake or invalid invoice, any other person may report the matter to the board for necessary action as per the relevant provisions of the Act and the rules thereunder. Under Sub-rule (4) the informer may claim a reward on the basis of the detection and recovery made in consequence of a fake or invalid invoice in terms of provisions of section 720 of the Sales Tax Act.

Source: Pro Pakistani

The banking industry has failed to achieve its target of Rs. 1.5 trillion for the agriculture credit disbursement due to the ongoing challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic and climate changes.

The credit disbursement to the agriculture sector increased to Rs. 1.36 trillion in FY21, with a growth of 12 percent over FY20, according to the data released by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).

Also, the number of agricultural credit borrowers had declined by five percent, down from 3.7 million in FY20 to 3.5 million in FY21 primarily due to a pandemic-induced limited outreach.

The disbursement is a collective effort of 49 financial institutions that achieved 91 percent of their assigned target of Rs. 1.5 trillion for the year.

During FY21, the commercial banks, specialized banks, and Islamic banks disbursed Rs. 1.210 trillion against their target of Rs. 1.277 trillion, thus achieving 95 percent of their assigned disbursement target.

However, as a group, microfinance banks achieved 73 percent of their target by disbursing agricultural loans of Rs. 132 billion to small farmers. Likewise, the microfinance institutions/rural support programs collectively achieved 57 percent of their target by disbursing Rs. 23 billion to small and marginalized farmers.

The central bank, together with the government and private sector, made concerted efforts for the development and commercialization of the agricultural sector through the provision of formal financial services.

Moreover, the proactive response by the SBP to combat the threats of the pandemic bolstered the economy and resulted in a relatively quick rebound in economic activities across all the major sectors, including agriculture.

Additionally, by reducing the policy rate by 625 basis points, the SBP also allowed banks to offer the principal deferment and restructuring of agriculture loans to help combat economic disruptions.

Since April 2021, around two million borrowers in the agriculture and microfinance sectors have availed the deferred principal and restructured loan option with outstanding loans amounting to Rs. 132 billion.

The SBP’s programs and policy interventions addressed the cross-cutting issue of food security enabling a regulatory environment, greater inclusion of women, and advancements in farm practices.

Furthermore, the SBP facilitated banks’ partnerships with the provincial Land Revenue Authorities for the integration and use of automated land records for loans.

The government’s crop loan insurance and livestock loan insurance schemes also played an instrumental role in encouraging banks to provide loans to small farmers.

Source: Pro Pakistani

The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has made it mandatory for the retailers/integrated suppliers of the point of sale (POS) system to provide names of buyers/customers where invoice value is over Rs 100,000 to the FBR.

The FBR issued SRO 1006(I)/2021 on Monday to issue a standardized format for invoices for the retailers/integrated suppliers.

According to SRO 1006(I)/2021, the name is required to be recorded when the customer is liable for tax or credit or when the invoice value is above Rs. 100,000.

In exercise of the powers conferred by the first proviso to sub-section (1) of section 23 of the Sales Tax Act 1990, the FBR has specified a standardized format for invoices issued under sub-rules (5) and (6) of rule 150ZEB of the Sales Tax Rules 2006:

Under rule 150ZEB of the Sales Tax Rules 2006, the registered persons (integrated suppliers) shall install such fiscal electronic devices and software, as approved by the Board, available on its website with complete technical instructions for installation, configuration, and integration. The integrated suppliers shall notify the Board through the Computerized System of all their outlets, and the integrated supplier shall register each point of sale (POS) to activate the integration.

Under the standardized format for invoices, the following information interalia is required to be clearly printed on every invoice issued through all Point of Sale (PoS) systems integrated with FBR, namely:

a. Business information included the business name or brand name; complete address of the business location; FBR’s Sales Tax Registration Number (STRN) and National Tax Number (NTN); the name of the Tax Office/Formation, the business is registered at and unique PoS registration number.

b. Invoice details included unique sequential invoice number; date and time of sale; mode of payment (cash, credit or debit card, cheque, or gift vouchers), and optional for business to business (B2B): Name of the buyer/customer/service recipient. The name is recorded when the customer is liable for the tax or credit, or invoice value is above Rs. 100,000.

c. Transaction details included an item-wise description of goods or service and (unit) price exclusive of tax; tax rate for each item (item-wise breakdown of the tax rate. Apply 0 percent if an item is exempt; item-wise quantity of goods; tax amount; total sale value; tax charged on the invoice; discounts, if any; PoS service fee of Rs. 1/- per invoice; total payable amount; and total received amount.

d. FBR details included FBR fiscal invoice number; logo of FBR’s PoS invoicing system; verifiable QR code. dimensions: 7X7mm, and statement in legible font and size: “Verify this invoice through FBR Tax Asaan Mobile App or SMS at 9966 and win exciting prizes in draw.”

A sample invoice is appended herewith for ease of replication, FBR added.

Source: Pro Pakistani