Govt to serve notices to 300 Pakistanis owning properties in UAE: sources

ISLAMABAD: The federal government has decided to issue notices to 300 Pakistani nationals who own properties in the United Arab Emirates, sources informed Geo News Saturday.

The sources said that notices will be sent to individuals who own six or more properties in UAE. They will be inquired about their sources of income and tax paid by them.

Officials have also compiled a list of such individuals, the sources said further. According to the list, Waqar Ahmed owns 22 properties in Dubai, Mohammad Khan owns 18; Zafar Ali, Noshad Haroon and Mohammad Ameen have 12 properties each.

It is pertinent to note here that Pakistan and Dubai have signed a double taxation treaty, which bounds investments in Dubai to be shown in the wealth tax statements in Pakistan.

In February this year, the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) had listed 400 Pakistanis who own real estate in UAE, after the revenue minister announced an investigation into the matter.

Geo News broke the story on February 6 that Pakistani individuals had bought luxury residential villas, flats, and estates in 12 renowned localities in the Emirati capital.

The majority of these individuals had not mentioned these properties in their annual returns and were said to be moving their assets out of the country to avoid being caught in the event of a serious crackdown in Pakistan on this unaccounted for money.

In the same month, the UAE government confirmed particulars of 31 wealthy Pakistanis who owned over 55 properties worth around Rs60 billion in the heart of Dubai.

The disclosure was made weeks after Pakistan shared details of the individuals, who had allegedly made investments in real estate in Dubai, with the UAE authorities.

The Economic Crime Wing of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) had requested the UAE Ministry of Finance for the exchange of information about rich Pakistanis.