In the appeal made on Friday, SAI President Ahmed Azeem Alvi acknowledged the government’s ongoing efforts to improve the business environment but warned that the proposed amendments risked derailing those efforts by imposing harsh and disproportionate measures on formal businesses.
“The new provisions undermine the documented economy, discourage compliance and may reverse the progress made for broadening the tax base,” he said. “These amendments are not only economically burdensome but also legally problematic. They appear to violate constitutional guarantees and the principles of natural justice.”
The SAI emphasised that bypassing parliamentary procedures to implement such sweeping changes would set a troubling precedent and damage investor confidence.