Islamabad: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has recommended Pakistan to introduce stricter laws on collecting capital gains from real estate and charge Capital Gains Tax (CGT) on cryptocurrency investments.
During the review talks around a $3 billion stand-by arrangement (SBA), the IMF asked Pakistan to review the taxation of real estate and listed securities. The lender also recommended the country’s federal law enforcement agency to impose taxes on crypto capital gains.
The adjustment in tax rates, as recommended by the Washington-based lender, aims to collect yearly taxes on capital gains on real estate assets, irrespective of whether the owner chooses to sell or retain the property.
The four-day review began on Thursday, and if successful, will release a final tranche of around $1.1 billion secured by Islamabad under a last-gasp rescue package last summer.
Earlier, the finance ministry said that Pakistan had met all structural benchmarks, qualitative performance criteria and indicative targets for successful completion of the IMF review.
In July last year, IMF Executive Board approved the Stand-by Agreement (SBA) for $3 billion for Pakistan.
