Meeting called to easing tax compliance burden Financial Daily 07/06/20121

Mr Hashim Raza, CEO the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority (SMEDA) has  invited the Union of Small and Medium Enterprises (UNISAME) for a meeting under the chairmanship of Khusro Bakhtiar, federal minister, industries and production (MoI&P) on June 07, 2021 at Pak Secretariat, Islamabad.

The  agenda  is for  discussions on SME Tax issues including those related to FBR and provincial revenue authorities and feedback  on MoI&P/SMEDA proposals for easing tax and compliance burden for SMEs.

President UNISAME Zulfikar Thaver said the MoI&P has stated in the invitation that they need input to help them design an optimal SME Tax Incentives package for FY 2021-22.

Thaver said that we will stress on SME friendly policies with fair and reasonable rates of taxation and revival of self assessment scheme. A friendly policy is one which is simplified, fair, facilitating and enabling rather than threatening or scaring the tax payer.

Secondly we will seek tax exemptions and tax holiday for new entrants and backward areas.

Thirdly we will seek tax exemptions for import substitution industries.

Fourthly the duties on imported raw and packing materials must be reduced.

Fifthly the government needs to lower the cost of energy and finance to make the SME units competitive.

Thaver said banking, insurance, leasing and logistics are the pillars of the economy and every effort must be made to make them modern and efficient.

The SMEs are happy that the finance minister Shaukat Tarin has assured them of a fair balanced  budget with no additional burdens and no blind following of IMF dictations.

UNISAME Council is confident that if the tax network is increased and if corruption is curbed in the government institutions then it will result in more revenues and will enable lowering of the taxes.