Minister of State for Revenue Hammad Azhar on Wednesday instructed the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to focus on simplifying the tax collection system while acknowledging the need for new legislation in this regard, Radio Pakistan reported.

The state minister's directives came during a speech at the three-day International Conference on Taxation at the FBR's Lahore office.

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Azhar, as per Radio Pakistan, also delivered a media briefing where he said that he plans on asking parliament for a special tax relief for small retailers.

However, he also warned that no leniency will be shown during the drive to recover taxes.

The FBR, with an eye on accelerating revenue collection, has reportedly already devised a comprehensive plan for tax reforms, one of which is the simplification of the tax system.