By Farooq Awan

The Inland Revenue Department of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has withdrawn its officials from the premises of M/s Kim Mun Chinese Restaurant after a complaint was filed with the Federal Tax Ombudsman (FTO).

According to an official document available with Wealth Pakistan, the restaurant is an active taxpayer and is integrated with the FBR’s Point of Sale (POS) system.

The management complained to the FTO that the presence of Inland Revenue officials on the restaurant's premises for the past two weeks under Section 175C of the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001, was inconveniencing customers and affecting the business.

In its response, the tax office stated that the Inland Revenue officials had been withdrawn from the premises. The department also admitted that no discrepancy in sales had been found during the monitoring process.

The complainant also questioned the authority behind the order, arguing that an order under Section 175C should be issued by the Board or the chief commissioner. In response, the department stated that the order had been issued with the prior approval of the chief commissioner.

The official comments were submitted by Maria Sharif, Commissioner-IR, Regional Tax Office, Islamabad.

Credit: INP-WealthPk