Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Revenue Authority (KPRA) has setup a monitoring system to address complaints and bring service providers in its tax net.

The system not only allows the authority to collect taxes but also provides funds for development projects.

KPRA has with the help of the USAID has launched Aitemad-e-Khyber programme to spread awareness among public to pay taxes for the development of the province.

Aftab Ahmed, deputy director legal tax policy at the KPRA said that sales tax on service has been currently imposed on settled districts of the province. However, he said that currently merged areas were exempted from sales tax. Mr Aftab said that the authority will spend this system to the merged areas as well.

He said that the authority was running multi-platform awareness campaign to raise awareness regarding collection of sales tax from service providers.

Mr Aftab said that those not paying tax could face legal consequences as well.

Talking about KPRA structure, he said that it consisted of a service provider and customer while the KPRA acting as tax agent supervises the entire process.

He said that tax culture has yet to take roots in the province; however, the authority was doing its best to persuade all the service providers. Besides, he said that most of the restaurants were among the taxpayers and the authority has installed its Restaurant Invoice Management System or RIMS at these restaurants.

Mr Aftab said that the KPRA receives a copy of invoice issued from the system and later the invoices and ledgers are checked under the rules.

He asked customers to check the receipts from any services providers for the National Tax Numbers or NTN and in case of this number they can lodge a complaint with KPRA through mail or WhatsApp.

On the other hand, KPRA figures show that there were over 18,000 services providers registered with the authority as tax payers. The authority has only 200 taxpayers when it started its service; however, the number of tax payers was increasing with each passing day.

KPRA deputy collector Saud Khan said that monitoring system enabled the service providers to easily file their returns at the end of every month. He said that authority’s audit wing checked this entire process.

Besides, he said that there also existed an investigation system in the authority which keep checks on entire tax collection and service providers system. He said that they have also setup a grievance redressal mechanism as well to receive and address the complaints.۔

Mr Khan said that mostly dealt with the service providers including hotels, restaurants and doctors and the authority also received complaints from them.

He said that most of these service providers dealt in cash and even receipts also lack the NTN number.

 

In addition to this, he said that RIMS system also alerts them about deduction of more tax from customers and they take action in similar instances.

On the other hand, Mr Aftab said that KPRA had a very good team which has led to growing public confidence in it.

He said that they also try to include public feedback in the authority’s policies.

He said international level hotels pay up to 15 percent in sales tax. In addition to this, he said that about 200 dhabas across the province have also installed the RIMS system and charge about two percent sales tax.

Mr Aftab said that people can check the service on which the sales tax was applied from the KPRA website.

He said that registration of a business in a tax net made it easier for the authority to determine the businesses and individuals income profile and taxes they are paying to other departments.

In addition to this, he said that authority was striving to persuade the locals to pay their due share of taxes for the betterment of the province.

However, he added that the authorities could even seal a business not paying the sales tax.

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