FBR says tax collection in 2015-16 exceeds target by Rs26bn

ISLAMABAD: The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) managed to surpass the total tax collection target for the fiscal year ended on June 30 by Rs26 billion at Rs3,130 billion, despite witnessing a steep fall in global oil prices.

In the revised estimates, the tax collection was pegged at Rs3,130 billion, higher than the budget estimate of Rs3,104 billion, the FBR said in a statement on Tuesday. The FBR disclosed this after reconciling the figures with the Accountant General Pakistan Revenues (AGPR).

"The FBR collected more than Rs3,130 billion in the tax year 2015/16 as per figures consolidated and reconciled by the AGPR…which is unprecedented," the statement said. The International Monetary Fund also considered this as an achievement on the fiscal front that the FBR’s collection was not revised downward in the 2015/16.

After witnessing a fall in oil prices in the international market, the government raised sales tax on different petroleum products in the last financial year and general sales tax (GST) rate in case of diesel went up to 50 percent at some point of time. But, now the GST rate has been reduced to its normal rate of 17 percent, except for high speed diesel (HSD), which stands at 28 percent with effect from August 1.

In the second quarter of the last financial year, the FBR had taken additional revenue measures by raising one percent import duty and enhancing rate on the import of luxury items. Following that, the FBR achieved the quarterly envisaged revenue target.

Previously, the board used to slash down its targets twice or thrice in a year. However, there are allegations that the FBR used advance taxes and stuck refunds to balloon its revenue collection during the last financial year. The FBR generated over Rs1,000 billion during the last three years by raising tax rates and abolishing exemptions, but the revenue had not gone up proportionally during this period. It clearly indicates that in case of rate hike in taxes, the tax evasion also increased.

However, the FBR said it collected more than Rs3,130 billion for the year ending June 30, 2016 as against Rs2,589 billion collected in the year ending June 30, 2015, thereby registering a 21 percent increase over the last year.

The FBR collected Rs1,220 billion as income tax, up 18.1 percent over the last year. The collection of sales tax in this period stood at Rs1,329 billion with a growth of 22.2 percent. The FBR collected Rs404 billion under the head of customs duty, thereby showing an increase of over 30 percent.

Federal Excise duty was collected to the tune of Rs177 billion, thus, reflecting as increase of 9.1 percent over the collection of last year. The FBR also wants to highlight that the originally assigned targets were achieved without any downward revision, which was an unprecedented accomplishment, and spoke volume of the success of the economic policies being followed by the present government.—Originally published in The News

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