KARACHI, Nov 15: The Regional Tax Office (RTO), Karachi, has collected Rs30.926 billion in revenue during the first four months (July-Oct) of the fiscal year 2008-09 showing a growth of 35 per cent over Rs22.992 billion collected during the corresponding period last year.

Among the 17 RTOs presently functioning in the country, Karachi is the only tax region, which managed to achieve the national target of direct taxes set by the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR).

According to official figures, the RTO Karachi had been given a revenue target by the FBR for the current fiscal at Rs130 billion, which was 46 per cent higher than the previous year’s target of Rs89 billion.

Some of the factors, which enabled the RTO to achieve the target, were effective monitoring of collection through withholding tax agents, which resulted in higher revenue up to 23 per cent.

Secondly, the RTO went into extensive exercise for reaching the taxpayers by setting up 50 kiosks in major markets and shopping malls of the city.

A mobile tax facilitation unit was also launched, which resulted in higher collection of taxes along with tax returns, Asrar Raouf, the director general RTO, Karachi, said while talking to Dawn.

As a result of this exercise record revenue of Rs2.011 billion was collected with tax returns this year.

These mobile units were fully equipped to facilitate taxpayers by providing them necessary information, tax return forms and even issuing National Tax Numbers (NTN) on the spot, the director general RTO said.

Despite the fact that the RTO, Karachi, is not fully operational as many of its units and zones, which were temporarily shifted for the renovation of the Income Tax building, are yet to be set up, but better performance by the staff and officers helped to get good results, he added.

The performance of any tax collecting machinery could be judged from the size and volume of tax demand created and in this case the RTO, Karachi, during period under review (July-Oct) collected Rs1.165 billion on this account as against Rs511 million last year.

There was a huge collection of Rs26.659 billion from withholding tax, which is deducted at various stages by withholding tax agents.

These include deduction at import stage, on salaries, dividends, services, and contracts etc.

The RTO during this period collected Rs9.437 billion from income tax at import stage showing a growth of 27 per cent against Rs7.410 billion collected during the same period last year.

The gross collection of direct taxes stood at Rs31.487 billion, which is higher by 33 per cent over last year collection of Rs23.587 billion.

However, after making refund payments to the tune of Rs790 million the tax office made a net collection of Rs30.926 billion in direct taxes.

Last year, net collection stood at Rs22.267 billion, which is 38 per cent less than this year’s net collection of Rs30.926 billion.

Asrar Raouf said that under the ongoing tax reforms all the RTOs are presently collecting sales tax, income tax and federal excise duty under one roof and by the end of next year income tax and sales tax will be merged and CED will be gradually phased out.