ECC meets today to levy Rs40 billion new taxes

ISLAMABAD: The ECC is scheduled to meet today (Monday) under the chairmanship of Finance Minister Ishaq Dar for considering approval to raise the regulatory duty on over 300 imported luxury items and increasing the excise duty on cigarettes.

"Yes, the ECC will meet today (Monday) at 2.30pm with Finance Minister in chair to grant approval to taxation measures for generating revenues to the tune of Rs40 billion in the remaining seven months of the current fiscal year," official sources confirmed to The News here on Sunday.

The government, the sources said, had decided to rely upon increasing the regulatory duty on luxury items in order to bridge the gap of Rs40 billion revenue shortfalls in the coming seven months (Dec to June) period. The excise duty on cigarettes will also be increased, he added.

Under the IMF’s arrangement of $6.64 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF), the government had agreed in Dubai to raise revenues by taking additional measures in order to bridge the shortfall being faced by the FBR in the first quarter (July-Sept) period of the current fiscal year.

Now the IMF's executive board is scheduled to hold its meeting by mid December 2015, so it is imperative on the economic managers to approve additional taxation measures 15 days prior to the due date of the next Board meeting that will pave the way for circulating the Fund’s staff report among members states for considering approval of the 10th tranche worth $505 million around December 15.

Pakistan is eyeing to increase its foreign currency reserves to the level of $21 billion within the next few months and smooth approval of 10th tranche under 36 months EFF programme will enable Islamabad to get more dollar inflows from multilateral and bilateral creditors.
—Published in The News