Pakistanis wired $15.25 bln abroad, finds committee
Apart from this amount, a substantial money also transferred abroad through hundi and hawala
(Dunya News) - According to a 12-member committee report, $15.25 billion have been transferred abroad through banking channel during fiscal year 2016-17.
This has been bared in an eight-page written order in a suo motu case related to retrieving the alleged ill-gotten money from foreign accounts.
Apart from this amount, a substantial money also transferred abroad through hundi and hawala information part of report submitted to Supreme Court 12-member committee of experts headed by SBP submits.
The committee consisted on Governer State Bank Tariq Bajwa, Chairman FBR Tariq Pasha, Additional Attorney General Mohammad Waqar Rana, senior lawyer Khalid Anwar, Advocate Ikramul Haq, Finance Secretary Arif Ahmed Khan, Shabbar Zaidi, Mehmood Mandiwala, Bashir Ali Muhammad, Tariq Paracha, Nisar Muhammad Khan.
Committee finds that Cash feeding of foreign currency accounts and the immunity of such transactions and the movement of funds deposited in foreign currency accounts and free cash movement of foreign currency of any amount within and out of Pakistan are the causes of transfer of money in foreign accounts.
However, pointing out tax law flaws, committee motioned in report short limitation periods in tax laws for initiating legal action against tax evader, limited bilateral tax treaties with other countries for exchange of information, lacunae in tax laws and regulations have enabled avoidance of tax on technical grounds and failure of the present income and wealth tax declaration forms to require disclosure of foreign assets and income have hampered detection of foreign assets accumulated by citizen.
Furthermore, committee added that some illegal activities like negligence in the regulatory framework for the retained portion of export precedes facilitating leakage and the accumulation of undeclared assets abroad, under invoicing and over-invoicing in foreign trade transactions, remittance through normal banking channels as black money stashed abroad could be whitened without payment of tax and the Hundi and Hawala means of foreign currency transfers have remained available in the market for transfer of ill-gotten or tax evaded funds.
