ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court has directed wealthy organizations earning more than Rs 150 million to deposit 50 percent of the super tax levied on them to the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) within seven days.
A two-member bench comprising Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial and Justice Athar Minullah heard the petition filed by the FBR against the interim order of the Lahore High Court (LHC).
FBR counsel Salman Akram Raja informed the bench that the LHC, through an interim order, had barred his client from such recovery before the final judgment was issued.
However, counsel for the respondents argued that the government’s super tax on corporations is unconstitutional. The Supreme Court, while suspending the High Court’s interim order, allowed the FBR to collect 50 percent of the super tax from these industries within a week.
Last year, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced a 10 percent super tax on 13 major categories to boost tax collection, also known as the “Poverty Eradication Tax.”
The government had said that “tough decisions” had been taken to protect the economy.
The sectors to be taxed include cement, steel, banking, airlines, textiles, automobile assembling, sugar mills, beverages, oil and gas, fertilizers, cigarettes, chemicals and LNG terminals.
The government expected an income of 80 billion rupees through the super tax, but the defendant companies approached the Lahore High Court challenging the implementation of the super tax.
In September 2022, the Lahore High Court issued an interim order restraining the FBR from collecting super tax from these companies. Later, the FBR filed an appeal in the Supreme Court against the interim order of the Lahore High Court.
