Govt plans to penalise non-filers in upcoming budget

It looks like, the government has decided penalize the non-filers in the upcoming Finance Bill 2024, which aims to generate an additional Rs300 to Rs400 billion in revenue through additional taxes for the 2024-25 fiscal year.

The bill would also enhance the powers of the Directorate General of Digital Invoicing, Business Recorder reported.

An increase on taxes on cash withdrawals from banks is also on cards in the next budget. The move has already been discussed between Pakistani authorities and the International Monetary Fund team.

About Rs15 billion could be collected through the advance tax on cash withdrawals.

There was a possibility of increasing taxes on income from non-essential and luxury items in the upcoming budget.

Moreover, the government is also planning to impose a “duty” on input tax claimants to ensure they are not involved in missing trader fraud and to report suspicious transactions, with penalties for non-compliance.

Apart from that, the Federal Board of Revenue has proposed raising the withholding tax on cash withdrawals by non-filers from 0.6% to 0.9%, expected to generate Rs15 to Rs20 billion in extra revenue.

More than Rs50,000 cash withdrawals by non-filers, in a single day, through credit cards/ ATMs are also subjected to 0.6 per cent withholding tax.

The government aims to penalise non-filers of income tax returns through such measures and address issues with the current personal income tax structure.