KARACHI: Some leading e-commerce platforms are said to be the biggest source of trading in expensive smuggled smartphones that are not licensed by the PTA in the country.
“If you want to buy a very expensive smartphone but don’t want to pay taxes, look no further.Pakistan’s e-commerce platform, which has over 4 million monthly active users, is not prone to smuggling or theft. It's an easy place. We offer non-PTA approved mobile phones at the best price with a 6-month warranty,” said a marketer.
According to tax experts, the apparent failure of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to enforce strict policies on digital markets has led to these e-commerce platforms emerging as the biggest intermediaries for such illegal smartphone transactions in the country. He said that.
Mobile phone smuggler network, sellers discovered
A source associated with one such e-commerce platform, who requested anonymity, claimed that their platform has strict guidelines, saying: user. ”
Elaborating on seller registration, he said business owners will be allowed to sell products on our platform only after properly verifying their business details to ensure the authenticity of their business.
However, it has been observed that when it comes to the hefty 13% fee imposed on expensive smartphones, all the policies seem to favor the promotion of smuggled devices. Alarmingly, authorized stores of Samsung and Apple products in major markets of Pakistan are openly selling smuggled and non-PTA approved mobile phones. Instead of cracking down, these e-commerce sites offer a 6-month guarantee to earn more commission income.
While the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) strives to boost the economy and aims to make the FBR efficient and transparent through reforms, the incompetence of revenue authorities has led to these markets becoming Encouraged to facilitate trade in unauthorized contraband smartphones without fear. Legal action should be taken as they know how to deal with FBR, tax experts said.
Some tax experts did not rule out the possibility that FBR officials were well aware of the illegal transactions on these platforms, causing severe financial damage to the national economy. However, no action is being taken, perhaps because corruption is rampant within the FBR, thereby enabling Pakistan's largest e-commerce site to facilitate such illegal activities in the presence of the FBR. do not have.
“If this is not the case, the FBR has shown itself to be extremely incompetent in dealing with the challenges of the digital age and there is an urgent need to reform the FBR on modern lines to avoid such challenges in the future.” “It shows,” the expert said.
They stressed that every department within the FBR, be it Inland Revenue or Customs, has an anti-smuggling unit. But none of the companies remains able to make an impact because they use decades-old technology to combat the smuggling threat.
As a result, there are multiple anti-smuggling units and despite spending large amounts of financial resources, neither the FBR nor these anti-smuggling units have any interest in fairly eradicating smuggling from the country, making the Board desirable could not achieve results.
Tax experts said that under the law, e-commerce platforms and their sellers are equally responsible for this violation, and tax authorities have the power to take action against them. However, senior officials from the various anti-smuggling units approached acknowledged that they had the authority, but did not provide a satisfactory explanation for their inaction in this matter.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2024
