The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has introduced a new facility allowing taxpayers to apply for the amendment or cancellation of electronic sales tax invoices even after the prescribed 72-hour time limit has expired.
The facility, available through the FBR’s IRIS portal, requires prior approval from the concerned Commissioner Inland Revenue (CIR). It is intended to help taxpayers correct errors or discrepancies in valid electronic sales tax (DI) invoices that are discovered after the 72-hour period.
According to a user manual issued by the Pakistan Revenue Automation Limited (PRAL), taxpayers can submit an application through IRIS and attach supporting documents for review by the tax authorities.
Here is a step-by-step guide to using the facility.
How to apply for amendment or cancellation
Step 1: Log in to IRIS
Log in to your account on the FBR’s IRIS portal. From the main menu, open the Sales Tax section and select Applications.
Step 2: Select the relevant application
Choose “Application for Amendment in Electronic Sales Tax Invoice (after 72 hrs)” from the available options.
Select the relevant tax period and click Continue.
Step 3: Add the invoice
Open the DI Sale Invoice section and click Add Invoice.
You will need the FBR Invoice Transaction Number, also referred to as the Master Invoice Number. This number can be found in the DI Invoice Management section for the selected tax period. It is the number appearing before the hyphen in the invoice number.
Enter the number in the search field and click Search. Select the relevant invoice from the results.
Step 4: Choose whether to amend or cancel
After selecting the invoice, choose one of the two available options:
– For amendment: Select Load For Modification. Open the invoice, click Edit, make the required changes and select Save Item.
– For cancellation: Select Load For Discard. Choose the invoice, click Delete/Discard and confirm the action by selecting Yes.
An invoice selected for amendment cannot also be included for cancellation in the same application. Similarly, an invoice selected for cancellation cannot be amended through that application.
Step 5: Attach supporting documents
Open the Attachments tab and click the + icon to upload the relevant supporting documents in PDF format. After attaching the documents, click OK.
Review the application and click Submit.
What happens after submission?
Once submitted, the application is forwarded to the tax authorities for review. The concerned tax officer or commissioner may seek further information or clarification through IRIS’s Internal Correspondence facility.
If clarification is requested, taxpayers can respond by opening Outbox, selecting Sales Tax and choosing Application for Amendment in Electronic Sales Tax Invoice (after 72 hrs).
Under the Assignment tab, select the relevant assignment and click Reply. Choose “Clarification Provided”, enter the required explanation and click Save.
The tax authorities will then review the application. The commissioner or tax officer can approve or reject individual invoice items or multiple items together.
Important restrictions to remember
Taxpayers cannot apply for amendment or cancellation of invoices that have already been linked to Annexure-C (Sales) of a sales tax return or a Federal Excise Return.
Applications are also not allowed for invoices that have already been approved by the commissioner under another application, previously submitted or rejected by the commissioner, or are awaiting a decision in another application.
While an application is pending, the taxpayer cannot submit Annexure-C of the sales tax return. The IRIS system will block its submission until a decision is made.
If the application is approved, the amended invoices become available for loading into Annexure-C, subject to system validation. If it is rejected, the original invoices remain unchanged and are loaded into Annexure-C and, where applicable, the Federal Excise Return.
Taxpayers may submit more than one application for the same tax period, provided the invoices included in each application do not fall under the restrictions listed above.
An example
A shop issues an electronic sales tax invoice for a laptop but later discovers that the sale amount, sales tax figure or other invoice details were entered incorrectly. If the mistake is found after five days, the taxpayer can no longer use the ordinary 72-hour facility.
Under the new procedure, the taxpayer can apply through IRIS to amend the eligible invoice, attach supporting documents and seek the commissioner’s approval. If an invoice was generated by mistake, the taxpayer can instead apply for its cancellation.
The changes or cancellation, however, are not automatic. They can only take effect after the application has been reviewed and approved by the concerned tax authority.
The above article is contributed by Baseer Ahmed, Head of Politics Desk at Business Recorder (Digital).
Source: brecorder
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