The Supreme Court of Pakistan has ordered organisations earning more than Rs150 million to submit 50 per cent of the super tax imposed on them to the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) within seven days.
A two-member bench consisting of Chief Justice of Pakistan Umar Ata Bandial and Justice Athar Minallah heard the plea filed by the FBR against an interim order issued by the Lahore High Court (LHC). The FBR’s counsel, Salman Akram Raja, informed the bench that the LHC had temporarily prohibited the FBR from collecting the tax pending a final decision.
However, counsel for the respondents argued that the government’s super tax on corporations was unconstitutional. The Supreme Court suspended the interim order of the high court and allowed the FBR to collect 50 per cent of the super tax from these industries within seven days.
Last year, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced the implementation of a 10 per cent super tax, also referred to as the “poverty alleviation tax,” on 13 key industries to increase tax collection. The government stated that the “tough decisions” were made to safeguard the economy.
According to Geo, the sectors subject to the tax included cement, steel, banking, airlines, textile, automobile assembly, sugar mills, beverages, oil and gas, fertilizer, cigarettes, chemicals, and LNG terminals.
