Govt requests private sectors to pay taxes on time

Published On: December 19, 2020 04:02 PM NPT By: Republica | @RepublicaNepal

Govt seeks support of private sectors to relieve from the slow revenue collection that stood at 30% of the target in the first four months

KATHMANDU, Dec 19: With the government put into pressure to manage financial resources amid slow revenue collection, the Finance Ministry has started requesting private sectors to pay taxes on time.

In a meeting with representatives of Nepal Foreign Trade Association (NFTA) on Friday, Finance Minister Bishnu Poudel said private sectors need to assist the government that is facing the shortfall of financial resources at present. “The government has been undergoing a hitch, which the private sectors need to help by partnering with the government,” a press statement issued by the AFTA quoted Minister Paudel as saying.

As per the Financial Comptroller General Office, the government in the first four months of the current fiscal year collected only 29.78 percent of the targeted revenue of Rs 1.01 trillion. The progress in tax revenue collection stood at 31.17 percent whereas revenue collection under the non-tax headings was a meagre 16.91 percent during the period of mid-July and mid-December.

The government’s request comes at a time when private sectors have been seeking its support to revive the businesses devastated by the pandemic. According to the NFTA, the economic activities of the country have shrunk to a half compared to the total transaction that used to take place before the pandemic hit the country.

President of the NFTA Sunil Kumar Bansal said the government’s stimulus package is not adequate to help them revive the businesses. “On the other hand, many enterprises have failed to benefit due to complex procedures to get the government announced subsidies,” Bansal said.

Among other things, the NFTA has demanded the government to implement multiple rates of value added tax and revise the margin of auto loan to up to 80 percent from existing 50 percent to help them survive amidst the worst effects of COVID-19 pandemic.