A consultative session of stakeholders was held at the Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) to discuss the issue of property valuations determined by the FBR. All the stakeholders passed a resolution calling upon the FBR to implement the revised property valuations from 1st July 2022. They further demanded that FBR's Valuation Review Committee for Islamabad should determine the revised property rates under the umbrella of ICCI to achieve a win-win solution of this problem.
Addressing the meeting, Muhammad Shakeel Munir, President, Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry said that the FBR has postponed the new rates of property till January 16 and suspended its SRO of 1st December 2021, which was a wise decision. He said FBR has directed its Chief Commissioners to form Valuation Review Committees (VRCs) by December 10 and stressed that all stakeholders should be given adequate representation in the VRCs. He urged that the property rates should be revised in consultation with all stakeholders to resolve this issue with consensus. He assured that ICCI was ready to cooperate with the FBR in finding out an amicable solution of this important issue. He said that due to the PM’s construction package, the construction industry was the only industry which was boosting in these difficult times. But the FBR has set new property rates from December 1 without consultation with stakeholders due to which property transactions have stopped as one one was able to pay so much high taxes on new rates. He said that instead of increasing the rates in one go, FBR should revise rates gradually to save the business activities from their negative impact.
Sheikh Jamshaid Akhtar Senior Vice President, Muhammad Faheem Khan Vice President ICCI, Sardar Tahir Mehmood President & Musarat Ejaz Chairman of Federation of Realtors of Pakistan, Arif Jeeva Vice President FPCCI and former Chairman ABAD, Chaudhry Muhammad Naseer President Islamabad Builders and Developers, Zahid Rafique Secretary General Islamabad Estate Agents Association, Chaudhry Muhammad Masood Convener of ICCI's Real Estate & Developers Committee, Mian Akram Farid Chairman Founder Group, Tariq Sadiq President Islamabad Industrial Association, Khalid Javed, Muhammad Ijaz Abbasi, Khalid Iqbal Malik & Sheikh Amir Waheed former Presidents ICCI, Muhammad Naveed Malik former Senior Vice President ICCI, Chaudhry Nadeem ud Din, Tahir Abbasi, Malik Najeeb, Saad Khan and others also spoke at the occasion and said that the FBR has set December 15 as the deadline for submission of objections on the new rates to the VRCs, which was a very short time. They stressed that FBR should extend this date up to Dec: 25 so that stakeholders should have ample time to submit their objections. They said that the FBR had increased the property rates from one 100 to 600 percent which were totally unjustified and had brought the business activities of the property sector to a grinding halt. They demanded that VRCs should be constituted in consultation with stakeholders so that the property rates could be revised with consensus. They further demanded that the revised rates should be implemented from 1st July 2022 instead of January to save the ongoing business and investment projects in the property sector from disruption.