ISLAMABAD, Dec 27: The Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) and Central Board of Revenue (CBR) have constituted a joint task force to formulate a corporate tax policy within a period of two months.

The task force aimed at encouraging corporatization and providing for a progressive development of the corporate sector in the country. According to the terms of reference, the task force would review the existing legal and policy regime for corporate tax in this regard.

It would also review the applicable tax rates; multi-tiered taxation, sales tax; turnover tax; withholding tax; professional tax; capital value tax and the procedure for filing the tax returns by companies.

The body would suggest tax reforms in various areas such as rationalization of tax rates, streamlining of sales tax refunds, extension of sales tax coverage to more sectors, documentation of entire value chains across most areas and reduction in interface between taxpayers and tax officials.

The tax force would examine the prospects of broadening of the tax net to un-registered enterprises so as to sustain revenue in a reduced tax rate scenario and induce the conversion of un-registered entities into corporate enterprises.

It would suggest reforms that provide effective mechanisms and a level playing field to registered and un-registered enterprises and to suggest viable tax administration measure for implementation of the recommended reforms.

The task force will be headed by former federal tax ombudsman Justice (Retd) Saleem Akhtar with members included- CBR Member Policy and Reform M.S Lal; SECP Commission Abdul Rehman Qureshi; former Member Monopoly Control Authority Ahmad Khan; Chief Direct Taxes CBR Mukhtar Ahmad Gondal; Abdul Hameed Chaudri, FCA, Lahore; Syed Mohammad Shabbar Zaidi, FCA, Karachi and Syed Fayyaz Mahmud, director, SECP.