FBR Orders to Make Registration Mandatory For Doing Real Estate Business

The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has once again directed the real estate agents to get themselves registered and obtain registration certificates for doing the real estate business. According to an FBR document, the Anti-Money Laundering Act, 2010 empowers FBR inter alia to license or register its reporting entities namely, Designated Non-Financial Businesses and Professions (DNFBPs), impose conditions on any activities by DNFBPs to prevent the offenses of money laundering, and predicate offenses or financing of terrorism through the issuance of directions or imposing conditions under the relevant provisions of the Act. The order reads: “In the exercise of the powers conferred under Section 6A of the Anti-Money Laundering Act, 2010 read with clause 1 of Schedule IV ibid, and to foster the anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism regime in Pakistan, FBR is pleased to impose the condition on all Real Estate Development Authorities, Cooperative Housing Societies, and all other housing societies, schemes, and firms dealing in the real estate.” No public or private development authority shall conduct the business activity with any real estate agent for the transfer or registration of immovable property unless the real estate agent is registered with the FBR as a DNFBP, says the document. It adds, “the above condition shall be disseminated to all Real Estate Agents registered or dealing with the Development Authorities, Housing Authorities, Cooperative Housing Societies and other Housing Schemes dealing in the development of land for residential & commercial purposes, construction, and sale/purchase and/or transfer of ownership rights and also displayed on all relevant places for the information of the general public.” The FBR has further instructed that the real estate agents should obtain registration certificates from the concerned Director DNFBPs after getting registered as DNFBPs with FBR. It has made it clear, “any volition of this condition shall attract the penal provisions under the Anti-Money Laundering Act, 2010 and the AML/CFT Sanctions Rules, 2020. This condition comes into effect on January 1, 2021.”