KARACHI (February 02 2004): The Revenue Receipt Audit (RRA) wing of the Auditor-General of Pakistan will check audit of 85 percent of the units already audited by the Central Board of Revenue with preference to higher revenue risk areas.
The RRA has also been authorised to carry out initial audit of 15 percent of the total registered units. An agreement to this effect has been reached between Auditor-General of Pakistan (AGP) and Chairman Central Board of Revenue (CBR) in a meeting held recently.
Elaborating on the agreement, Collector Enforcement, Karachi, Khawaja Tanveer Ahmed said on Saturday that the agreement has barred the RRA staff to visit units for audit in case of 85 percent of the registered units and they would only check the veracity of the audit done by the Sales Tax Collectorate.
He said that the agreement would eliminate harassment of the trade, which had frequently complained about the number of agencies visiting units for audit.
The procedure laid down for exchange of record between the two government department provides that the CBR would provide complete lists of registered persons (RP) with audit reports indicating their complete profile on diskettes at the start of every month.
The RRA would select RPs for audit in terms of revenue risk areas for which the Sales Tax department would provide entire original record required to be maintained under the Sales Tax
Act, 1990 and rules framed thereunder. The RRA would ensure examination of record in one month from the date it is produced so as to return the same to the registered persons.
The agreement further provides that the RRA would use 15 percent of audit capacity in terms of RPs for initial audit. For this purpose the Sales Tax department would provide complete lists of RPs with computer profile on diskette in each category in May every year. The RRA would select large, medium and small units in each category.
Meanwhile the Sales Tax Wing of the CBR has issued directives to all Sales Tax collectorates to make ground arrangements for Revenue Receipt Audits for post audit, as well as initial scrutiny. The RRA office shall intimate Collectorate-wise the total number of registered persons that it has the capacity to put to audit in a year.
<br> The directive says that the Collectorate shall provide list of registered persons, audits reports findings and computer profile on diskettes. Of the RRAs aforesaid 'capacity for audit' in any collectorate, they will select registered persons who have already been audited by the department to the extent of 85 of their capacity whereas 15 percent of RRA capacity will be sued for registered persons selected by them for initial audit.
The CBR has further instructed that for the scrutiny of the departmental audits, the Collectorate shall provide audit reports, copies of return, and copies of refund claims in case of exporters.
Record of the registered persons shall be retained for two months after furnishing list to RRA office so as to make the same available to RRA for necessary scrutiny.
So far as initial audit is concerned RRA office will select equally from among large, medium and small taxpayers, the directive added.
