Private housing schemes in the Rawalpindi division are under scrutiny for failing to remit stamp duty dues amounting to Rs. 1.191 billion to the Punjab government, despite collecting billions from the public for registration fees and property transfers.

The issue came to light following an audit conducted by the Board of Revenue (BOR) Punjab, which revealed glaring discrepancies in the dues owed by private housing schemes across the region. According to the findings, while stamp duty recovery from these schemes amounted to Rs. 318 million, an alarming Rs. 1.191 billion remains outstanding.

Officials from the district administration have expressed concern over the non-compliance of these housing schemes with the amended Stamp Act, which mandates the timely remittance of stamp duty to the government. Despite charging new rates of stamp duty on land and property registrations from buyers, these schemes have failed to transfer the collected funds to the government coffers as required by law.

In Attock Distric
t, private housing schemes are reported to owe Rs. 4.367 million in stamp duty dues, with no recoveries made by the district administration thus far. Meanwhile, in Rawalpindi, housing schemes are defaulting on payments totaling Rs. 1.509 billion, of which only Rs. 318 million has been recovered, leaving a substantial sum of Rs. 1.191 billion still pending.

The situation is no different in Murree, where housing schemes owe Rs. 13.431 million in stamp duty payments. However, the local administration has only managed to recover Rs. 0.613 million, leaving Rs. 12.817 million outstanding.

However, the report indicates that no housing schemes in Chakwal, Jhelum, or Talagang are defaulters in stamp duty payments.

Source: Pro Pakistani