Islamabad: The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) is set to bring 2.8 million untaxed households into the tax net, with an estimated contribution of PKR 1.6 trillion to the national economy, as reported on October 8.
According to FBR spokesperson Bakhtiar Muhammad, there are approximately 3.5 million top households liable to pay taxes, but 2.8 million are currently non-compliant. Bakhtiar emphasised that the government has implemented a comprehensive plan to enhance the tax-to-GDP ratio, resulting in a significant increase in tax filers and collection for the fiscal year 2024-25. Tax return filings have surged by 105%, jumping from 1.8 million last year to 3.7 million due to the government’s prudent policies.
The FBR has also decided to impose 15 restrictions on non-filers within the next two to three months through a finance bill. These restrictions will prevent non-filers from purchasing property, buying vehicles, traveling abroad, and opening current accounts in banks.
Additionally, taxpayers will continue to benefit from lower bank transaction fees, while non-filers will face higher rates. However, Bakhtiar revealed that the FBR is phasing out the non-filer category, making tax filing mandatory for all. He highlighted that income can either be invested or spent, but the FBR will make both avenues inaccessible for non-filers through an automated system that integrates payment and invoicing.
Meanwhile, in terms of revenue collection, the FBR exceeded its September 2024 target, collecting PKR 1.106 trillion. Bakhtiar further mentioned that digitisation of customs processes, including examination and appraisal, is underway.
FBR Chairman Rashid Mahmood Langrial recently met with the World Bank to discuss the FBR Transformation Plan, focusing on key reforms under the Pakistan Raises Revenue Project. The reforms aim to streamline tax policy, implement digitisation initiatives, enhance human resource capacity, combat smuggling, and undertake comprehensive tax administration reforms.
As part of its ongoing efforts to accelerate digitization, the FBR has restructured senior positions within the board. A recent notification re-designated several roles, including the Member (Public Relations) as Member (Taxpayers Services), and the Member (Accounting) as Member (Organizational Audit). The Director General (Revenue Analysis) will now report to the Member (IR-Policy), and the Director General, Internal Audit (IR), will report to the Member (Organizational Audit).
Moreover, the FBR has merged the roles of Member (Information Technology) and Member (Digital Initiatives) into a new position: Director General (Information Technology and Digital Transformation). This new DG will report to the Member (IR-Operations). The consolidation of roles is aimed at enhancing efficiency and accelerating the FBR’s digital transformation.
