The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has frozen Pakistan International Airlines’ (PIA) bank accounts over non-payment of taxes amid an ‘all-important’ audit from the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), .
A delegation of the European Commission and European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) is currently in Pakistan, raising hopes that a ban imposed on Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) flights to the continent may be lifted.
The ban was imposed after May 2020 plane crash in Karachi and a statement made by the then aviation minister, Ghulam Sarwar Khan, in the parliament, telling the house that a large number of commercial pilots held fake licences or had cheated in exams.
While he later retracted the statement, EASA decided to extend the ban indefinitely. While he later retracted the statement, EASA decided to extend the ban indefinitely.
Due to the EASA ban, the national carrier has suffered Rs170 billion loss since restrictions were imposed on the airlines.
Amid the all-important EASA audit, the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) freeze PIA’s all bank accounts in an effort to recover an outstanding tax amount of over Rs2.76 billion.
