FBR amends laws to discourage disguising undisclosed receipts as gifts

July 31, 2019 (MLN): The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has made certain changes to the Finance Act 2019, in order to discourage the practice of tax avoidance via transfer of undisclosed receipts in the garb of gifts.

As per the comprehensive report released by FBR, data analysis of Income Tax Returns filed in previous years show that huge amount of non-recurring receipts from un-related persons are transferred in the name of gifts to avoid incidence of taxation.

Therefore, the FBR has made amendments in the relevant laws, so as to include any amount of fair market value of any property received without consideration or received as a gift in income under the head, “Income from other sources”.

However, gifts received from grandparents, parents, spouse, brother, sister, son or a daughter shall not be included in such income.

The new provision also states that an amount received by a person otherwise than by a cross cheque drawn on a bank or through a banking channel from a person holding a National Tax Number shall be treated as income chargeable to tax under the head “Income from other sources”.

This means that gift received by a person is chargeable to tax is gift is not received from grandparents, parents, spouse, brother, sister, son or a daughter of the recipient.

However, even if cash gift is received from the relations mentioned above but the same has not been received through cross cheque or banking channel, as the case may be, the amount of gift will still be added in income chargeable to tax under the head, “Income from other sources”.

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