dew falling on the real estate business is now about to lift

slamabad Real Estate Association Secretary Information and Chairman of the Standing Committee for CDA Israr-ul-Haq Mashwani has said that the dew falling on the real estate business is now about to lift and the most important responsible circles of the government are giving assurances and indications that the taxes imposed on real estate are being reduced and this will be decided in the budget, after which there are chances of promoting the real estate business. He said that for the reduction in taxes, we are getting information from the media and some of our own sources that the government is seriously considering this issue. At a time when this issue has started being repeated in the media once again before the budget, we once again want to remind the government of its past that it had accepted our demand to abolish the FED and now this is our demand. We want the government to also reduce the taxes imposed through 236 K and 236 C on this occasion. Our demand is The government has reduced the 236K tax to 0.5 and 236C to 1.5 as promised. We are hopeful that the government will take steps in this regard in the budget, after which the problems of the real estate business will be reduced. He said that we hope that the 3 percent Federal Excise Duty (FED) imposed on the first sale of all properties in the country will be abolished. This is really a wrong tax and unnecessary. Due to this tax, the real estate business has been stalled for a whole decade and this serial estate sector has suffered severe damage. Asrar-ul-Haq Mashwani said that we have also been taking this matter seriously and watching it closely for a long time. This decision has been taken in consultation with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). He said that according to our information, the government is making changes in taxes. It is hoped that the 3 percent FED on the allotment or transfer of property by filers and 5 percent FED on the transfer of property by non-filers will be abolished. The Prime Minister’s Task Force on Housing Sector has recommended the abolition of 3% FED and its decision has been suggested for implementation in due course. It is expected that legislation will be enacted soon in this regard. This matter is not a federal matter but a provincial matter and taxpayers have challenged the duty in the courts. He said that Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb has already agreed to submit a summary for abolition of the duty. The matter will now be placed before the federal cabinet for amendment of the Federal Excise Duty Act. The government wants to abolish the duty within this month, he said. The duty was effectively imposed on every house, plot and apartment in Pakistan sold after June 30, 2024. It is applicable on the first sale of commercial properties and residential plots or properties, the rate of which is 3% for filers, 5% for late filers, and 7% for non-filers, is collected at the time of booking, allotment or transfer. It should be noted that in the budget, the government had imposed a tax of Rs500,000 on farmhouses ranging from 2,000 to 4,000 square yards and Rs1 million on farmhouses exceeding 4,000 square yards within the Islamabad Capital Territory, and a tax of Rs1 million was imposed on residential houses ranging from 1,000 to 2,000 square yards, while a tax of Rs1.5 million is now imposed on houses exceeding 2,000 square yards. A 4 percent stamp duty was also approved on the value of commercial properties in the Islamabad Capital Territory.