KARACHI: Pakistan Tea Association (PTA) has urged the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to remove the anomaly relating to withholding tax on import of bulk packing tea.
According to a statement, the tea importers pointed out there was an ambiguity due to two different slabs for withholding tax at the import stage causing revenue losses to the government.
It asked the FBR to treat tea in table 2 of 12th Schedule and charge 2 percent withholding tax at the import stage on all bulk packing, which would not only improve the government’s revenue but will also increase legal trade.
The country’s tea imports during MFY21 stood at 194,962 tonnes valuing $435 million as compared to 155,372 tonnes costing $376m in the same period last year.
The average per tonne price of tea in 9MFY21 fell to $2,231 per tonne from $2,421 in the same period last year, but despite fall in world prices and low cost of import on account of rupee appreciation against the dollar from August 2020 till to date.
