News Desk |
The Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) and the United Business Group (UBG) on Wednesday jointly presented a set of 40 pre-budget proposals to Federal Finance Minister Asad Umar.
They sought a special package of incentives to accelerate the pace of economic activities besides demanding curtailing discretionary power of tax collectors. The traders also sought relief in taxation, duties and income tax.
FPCCI President Details Proposals
FPCCI President Engineer Daroo Khan Achakzai explaining the proposals to the media persons here on Wednesday said that the FPCCI and the UBG suggested the government to revamp taxation system along modern lines to accommodate the business community.
The government must eliminate regulatory duties and additional customs duty on raw materials so that the local industry could compete with the smuggled items and mitigate the effect of low-tariff free trade agreements, he said.
“The objectives of the FPCCI budget proposals are revamping the taxation system, documentation of economy, employment generation through industrialization, promoting a responsive and equitable taxation system, infrastructure development and trickledown effect of the fiscal space to the grass-roots level,” adding he said the government should reduce sales tax rate gradually from current 17 percent to single digit, abolish all duty and taxes on the imports of all machinery, reduce further tax on unregistered person from three percent to one percent and imposition of taxes on final goods.
The FPCCI president proposed that customs duties on all raw materials should be low or zero. The government must eliminate regulatory duties and additional customs duty on raw materials so that the local industry could compete with the smuggled items and mitigate the effect of low-tariff free trade agreements, he said.
Achakzai said before giving final shape to the proposals, all affiliated chambers, trade bodies, associations and 20-member high-level core committee of the UBC headed by its Central Chairman Iftikhar Ali Malik were taken into confidence.
Read more: FPCCI to take stakeholders into confidence: Business community thanks PM
About the current economic situation, Engr Daroo Khan Achakzai expressed his serious concern over the rising policy rate, increase in prices of petroleum products, the decline in foreign investment and devaluation of Pakistani rupee.