The National Board of Revenue (NBR) has intensified field-level intelligence operations to recover evaded revenue and prevent tax evasion. To this end, the authority has instructed all tax zones across the country to strengthen the activities of the Intelligence and Investigation Cell (IIC).
A directive in this regard was issued on Sunday, from the NBR’s headquarters (Tax Audit, Intelligence and Investigation).
The directive outlines the reconstitution of IIC teams in each tax zone, their responsibilities and procedures, the process of formulating recommendations, and approval procedures for revenue recovery.
According to the directive, IIC teams will initiate investigations in cases involving intelligence inputs from various sources, allegations of tax evasion, reports published in print and electronic media, discrepancies in income tax files, erasures or tampering, abnormal declarations of tax-free income, and net wealth disproportionate to taxable income.
If conclusive evidence of tax evasion is found, the concerned IIC team will submit a report for approval to the Intelligence and Investigation Committee in line with NBR instructions. The committee will authorize legal action and the recovery process for the proven evaded revenue.
Each tax commissioner has also been instructed to compile information on additional demands and collections generated through IIC activities in a prescribed format on a monthly basis and submit the report to the NBR by the 10th of the following month.
The NBR expects that strengthening field-level intelligence operations will make it easier to recover evaded revenue, reduce the tendency of tax evasion, and contribute to the development of a sound tax culture in the country.
