IMF for creation of single tax base.

Byline: Imran Ali Kundi

ISLAMABAD -- The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Friday emphasised upon harmonisation in the tax system and creation of a single tax base as it directly impacted on the ease of doing business.

The IMF suggested that Pakistan should introduce uniform tax rates and a single tax administration instead of two or three tax authorities in each province. The IMF Mission Chief Ramirez Rigo Ernesto made these remarks in a meeting with top officials of ministries of finance of federal and provincial governments. Visiting IMF Mission Chief Ramirez Rigo Ernesto met Punjab Finance Minister Makhdum Hashim Jawan Bakht, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Finance Minister Taimur Saleem Khan Jhagra, Balochistan Finance Minister Zahoor Ahmed Buledi, Federal Secretary Finance Naveed Kamran Baloch, Special Secretary Finance, Government of Sindh, Baqir Abbas Naqvi and other senior officials from the Finance Division. Local IMF officials were also present.

Ramirez Rigo Ernesto said he was impressed by what he described as good financial and fiscal management and maintenance of expenditure within the budget. However, he stressed upon a full use of the development budget to achieve the development goals. He also emphasised upon harmonisation in the tax system and creation of a single tax base as it directly impacted on the ease of doing business and went a long way in creating an enabling business environment and boosting confidence of the investors and businessmen.

He added that Pakistan had a continental size economy, much like the Western Europe where everybody had the same definition of the tax rate and services, and the same could be achieved in Pakistan through uniform tax rates and a single tax...