Levy of duties aimed at reducing import bill, furthering growth: FBR
The purpose of these duties is not the generation of revenue, the FBR clarified.
ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) - Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has said the purpose of recently-levied duties is to reduce the import bill, provide enabling atmosphere for competition to local manufacturers and further economic growth of the country.
FBR has maintained that during the current financial year, Pakistan has seen a surge in imports. In order to slow down the growth in the import of non-essential items or of the goods whose substitutes are locally produced, the government has imposed Regulatory Duty (RD) on such items.
FBR has issued the notification in consultation with the Ministry of Commerce, which has imposed new RD on 26 items only (137 tariff lines) including new cars (less than 1800 cc), plastic articles, Dry fruits, sun glasses, cigarette paper, tobacco, wall paper etc. Moreover, rates of RD have been increased on 21 imported items only (219 tariff lines) including betel nuts (Supari), betel leaves (Paan), cosmetics, fruit juices, tiles, footwear, tyres, handbags, tableware, kitchenware, and home appliances like air conditioners, refrigerators etc. The rates of RD range from 10% to 30% on different items, which are generally consumed by affluent segment of the society.
The purpose of these duties is not the generation of revenue but to reduce the import bill of the country. Moreover, the local manufacturers or producers of such items would be able to better compete with the imported products, which is expected to improve Pakistan’s economic growth and provide more employment. Moreover, the RD collected would be utilized to finance the export package of the government which would help in enhancing Pakistan’s exports.
An impression has been created that Regulatory duty has been imposed on 731 items, which is incorrect, the FBR stated, adding that this SRO has replaced eight previous SROs of RD, and most of the items that appear in this notification were already subject to RD in the previous SROs.
