The mobile phone service providers have started implementing a Supreme Court order to remove service/maintenance charges on pre-paid cellular scratch cards, Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) spokesperson Khurram Mehran told a private TV channel on Monday.
On a scratch card of Rs 100, a user will now receive a top-up of Rs 88.9, instead of Rs 76.94. Earlier in lieu of various fees and taxes, Rs 23.06 were deducted on mobile phone cards. This has now been reduced to Rs 11.11.
Mehran said that in an hearing earlier this year, the apex court had told mobile phone service providers that they could apply a 12.5 per cent withholding tax. However, the court had told them to abolish the 10 per cent administrative/service charges.
On June 11, 2018, a three-judge apex court bench headed by then chief justice Mian Saqib Nisar had suspended collection of taxes on mobile cards. “Rs 38.08 are being deducted on a prepaid mobile card of Rs 100, which is illegal,” the bench had noted, and later adjourned the hearing of the case for six months. Later, the federal and all provincial governments had challenged the interim order.
During one of the hearings, the court was told that the state had suffered a loss of about Rs90 billion since the issuance of the suspension order. The case was, however, taken up after Justice Nisar’s retirement in January. In April, the top court disposed of the suo motu case and restored all taxes. The order said the recovery of the taxes may therefore be resumed, adding, “However, the cellular telecom companies are not allowed to impose any service/maintenance charge thereon as they have elected not to impose these charges.”
