ISLAMABAD: Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) on Friday issued rules to reward tax officials and informers on detection and recovery of evaded amount.
The FBR issued SRO 78(I)/2021 and said that officers and staff deputed to exercise powers, enforce and/or perform functions and duties in designated entities under the specified statutes and informers or whistleblowers.
According to the rules, the officers / members of staff in Inland Revenue detecting the tax evasion shall be eligible for lesser of 20 percent of the tax sought to be evaded or two years’ salary at the time of detection/filing of the detection report.
Further, officer/member of staff completing the adjudication/assessment the reward shall be lesser of 20 percent of the tax sought to be evaded or two years’ salary as at the time of completion of adjudication / assessment.
The FBR said that if no appeal/revision has been filed against the assessment, the whole of the admissible reward shall be paid immediately after expiry of limitation for filing of appeal/revision.
In case an appeal has been filed against the assessment order the admissible reward claim would be processed as: 50 percent upon confirmation at first appeal forum; and 50 percent upon completion of appellate process on point of fact i.e. Appellate Tribunal Inland Revenue (ATIR).
The reward shall be paid only if the tax sought to be evaded has been recovered at least to the extent of 50 percent of the tax sought to be evaded.
In case detection and assessment have been made by the same officer, he shall be entitled to the reward of the lesser of 20 percent of the tax sought to be evaded or three years’ salary as at the time of detection / filing of the detection report.
In case there are more than one claimants of reward on account of detection or assessment, the reward would be apportioned as per the recommendation of the chief commissioner or director general concerned.
An informer / whistleblower in terms of clause (v) of rule 2 shall be entitled to a reward at the rate of 20 percent up to a maximum of Rs5 million of the tax sought to be evaded in a single case.