FBR imposes penalties worth 1 million on Tehzeeb Bakers, Metro Shoes

• Tehzeeb Bakers and Metro Shoes have been fined for failing to connect their retail outlets with the POS system.
• Under the Sales Tax Act 1990, POS integration is compulsory for all major retailers of Pakistan.

The FBR’s Large Taxpayers’ Office has imposed a penalty of PKR 1 million each on Metro Shoes and Tehzeeb Bakers for neglecting to connect their retail outlets with the enforcement agency’s Point of Sale (POS) system.

According to details, the POS integration has been mandatory for all major retailers of the country, as directed under the Sales Tax Act, 1990. It shares records of distributors’ real-time sales to the FBR and monitors the overall sales tax collection.

Metro Shoes is an indigenous Pakistani brand for women’s shoes and bags, with around 40 sales outlets across Pakistan. However, Tehzeeb Bakers has eight branches spread across Rawalpindi and Islamabad.

Sources have revealed that both brands fall under the category of tier-1 retailers, as prescribed under the sales tax law. However, despite repeated warnings and notices from the tax office, both Tehzeeb Bakers and Metro Shoes showed persistent non-compliance. They neglected to integrate their franchises with the computerized POS system.

The deadline for all tier-1 retailers to connect their POS with the FBR was the 31st of August, 2020.

The government body revealed that penalties would also be imposed on other non-payers in this category in the coming days.

Moreover, those retailers who do not abide by the rules even after the penalty’s imposition would find their outlets and business premises sealed by the LTO.

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