Pakistan’s Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has received only 130 income tax returns under its special tax scheme for traders and shopkeepers, far below its target of bringing hundreds of thousands of businesses into the tax system. The figures highlight the difficulties the government faces in expanding the country’s tax base.
According to an FBR official, the government had expected between 500,000 and 600,000 traders to file returns under the scheme. Sayyeda Maimuna, Second Secretary at the FBR’s Transformation Delivery Unit, said the initiative was designed to make tax filing easier and address concerns raised by traders.
The scheme allows eligible shopkeepers to submit a simplified, one-page return through the Tax Asaan app or the FBR’s online system. The minimum annual tax is Rs25,000, or 1% of turnover where applicable. Traders can also seek help at FBR facilitation centres.
The low participation comes despite government efforts to simplify registration and encourage voluntary compliance. Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb recently reviewed the scheme and called for measures to improve its implementation.
The FBR aims to bring more small businesses into the documented economy, improve tax collection and distribute the tax burden more fairly. Officials have indicated that enforcement measures may follow for traders who fail to meet their legal filing requirements.
