The Supreme Court of Pakistan has ruled that Customs authorities can recover import-stage sales tax and advance income tax even after goods have been cleared.
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The judgment, circulated by the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) on Thursday, clarified that Customs retains jurisdiction in cases where a short-levy is later discovered, such as due to a wrongly granted exemption.
The court observed that customs duty, sales tax, and advance income tax are assessed together at the import stage, and any deficiency should be recoverable by Customs to maintain the coherence of the statutory framework.
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With this decision, the Supreme Court set aside earlier High Court judgments and restored show-cause notices issued in several pending cases, converting the petitions into appeals for adjudication on merit.
