ISLAMABAD: The government has decided to implement alternative fiscal measures to tax bank profits accrued from investment in government securities.

To execute this decision, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has formed a seven-member committee, led by Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar, and tasked it with submitting a report to the government within one week.

The committee’s mandate includes reviewing the existing legal framework of fiscal measures related to advance-to-deposit ratio (ADR) of the banking sector. The committee will also engage with the banking sector to build consensus on the way forward, if possible.

The committee will finalise recommendations to ensure the realisation of government revenues by December 31, and propose non-fiscal regulatory measures to increase advances to the private sector.

In line with the prime minister’s directive, the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) issued a notification to form the committee to address the ADR issue. The committee members include the ministers for finance and law, minister of state for finance and revenue, attorney general, finance secretary, FBR chairman, State Bank governor and Asma Hamid.

The member (IR-Policy) at FBR will serve as the secretary of the committee.

Published in Dawn, December 7th, 2024