Punjab Finance Act, 1977

Section 1

Short title, extent and commencement.– 

(1) This Act may be called in the Punjab Finance Act, 1977.

(2) It shall extend to the Province of the Punjab.

     (3)  It shall come into force on and from the first day of July 1977.

Section 2

Amendment of the Punjab Motor Vehicles Taxation Act 1958 (W.P. Act No. XXXII of 1958).– For the Schedule to the Punjab Motor Vehicles Taxation Act, 1958, the Schedule given in the First Schedule to this Act shall be substituted.

Section 3

Tax on persons engaged in professions, trades, callings or employments.– (1) With effect from 1st July, 1977, there shall be levied and collected from the persons or classes of persons mentioned in column 2 of the Second Schedule to this Act engaged in a profession, trade, calling or employment [2][wholly or partly] in the Province of the Punjab a tax for each financial year at the rates mentioned in column 3 of the said Schedule.

(2) If a person is engaged in more than one profession, trade, calling or employment he shall pay the tax only in respect of one such profession, trade, calling or employment for which rate of tax is the highest.

(3) The Government may exempt any person or class of persons from the payment of the tax.

(4) Section 11 of the Punjab Finance Act, 1964 (W.P. Act XXXIV of 1964) is hereby repealed.

[(5) A person who fails to pay the tax within the prescribed time, shall, in addition to the amount of tax, be liable to pay a penalty not exceeding the amount of tax.]

Section 4

Amendment of West Pakistan Act No.X of 1958.– In the Punjab Entertainments Duty Act, 1958, in section 3, for sub-section (1), the following shall be substituted:-

     “(1)   There shall be levied and paid to the Government on all payments for admission to any entertainment, a duty, hereinafter referred to as the ‘entertainment duty’, at the rate of one hundred and twenty-five per cent of such payment including air-conditioning surcharge, if such payment exceeds one rupee and at the rate of one hundred per cent if such payment does not exceed one rupee:

                    Provided that if the amount of duty at the aforementioned rates is not a multiple of five paisa, the amount of duty shall be rounded to the next higher multiple of five paisa:

                    Provided further that where the proprietor of an entertainment admits any person to any place of entertainment without any payment or on payment of an amount less than the amount normally charged for admission thereto, the entertainment duty shall nevertheless be levied and paid on the amount which would have been normally charged for admission to that place.

                    Explanation I– In case there be different classes in connection with an entertainment, the phrase “place of entertainment” means the class to which a person is admitted.

                    Explanation II– The fact that any such person as is mentioned in the proviso to this sub-section has been admitted to a class more advantageously placed for viewing the entertainment than the class of which the others making larger payments are admitted, may be taken into account for determining whether the payment made is not that normally charged.”

Section 5

Amendment of Schedule I of Act No.II of 1899.– In the Stamp Act, 1899, in Schedule I, for the existing Article 23, the following shall be substituted:-

     “23.  CONVEYANCE as defined by section 2(10) not being a TRANSFER charged or exempted under No.62–

              (a)  In case of agricultural land.    Rupees four for every rupee one hundred or part thereof of the value of land.

              (b)  In any other case.                    Rupees five and a half for every rupee one hundred or part thereof of the value of the property.

Section 6

Application of existing laws.– Where any tax imposed or any duty levied by this Act is by way of an addition to any tax imposed or duty levied by or under any enactment and rules in force in the Punjab, the procedure provided in such enactment and rules for the assessment, collection and recovery of such tax or duty shall, as far as applicable, apply to the assessment, collection and recovery of additional tax or duty under this Act.

Section 7

Bar of suits in civil courts.– No suit shall lie in any civil court to set aside or modify any assessment, levy or collection of a tax or duty made under this Act and the rules made thereunder.

Section 8

Power to make rules.– The Government may make rules for the purposes of carrying out the provisions of this Act.