In Pakistan, businesses seek extension of tax return filing deadline — Dawn

In Pakistan, trade associations and tax professionals are calling for an extension of the tax return filing deadline, which expires on September 30. They cite delays in publishing the final return forms and a heavy load on the online reporting system.

As Dawn reports, as of September 29, Pakistan’s Federal Board of Revenue had received 5.181 million returns. This is 45.8% more than the 3.553 million returns filed in tax year 2025.

Appeals from businesses and tax professionals

The Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry, the Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and tax professionals have requested an extension of the deadline. The Karachi Tax Bar Association sent a five-page letter to the Member Inland Revenue (Operations) official.

The association reported delays in issuing draft notifications and technical failures on the IRIS portal. According to it, the final return form for tax year 2026 was published only on September 2, leaving taxpayers about one month before the statutory deadline. The letter also noted that outages and unstable operation of the portal hindered the timely filing of returns.

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The KTBA also drew attention to requirements for detailed disclosure of data on vehicles, real estate, bank accounts, shareholders, and partners. In the association’s view, this creates a significant burden for taxpayers, particularly large ones.

Tax return filing dynamics

The number of returns from individuals who do not receive salary income increased from 2.160 million to 3.389 million, or by 56.9%. The number of returns from salaried employees rose from 1.350 million to 1.740 million, an increase of 28.9%.

The number of returns from associations of persons increased from 33,186 to 44,924, or by 35.3%. At the same time, the number of returns from companies declined from 9,523 to 6,428, or by 32.5%. The final filing date for companies is set for December 31.

The Finance Act for 2026–2027 significantly increased penalties for late filing of returns and restoration to the list of active taxpayers. The penalty for companies rose from 20,000 to 100,000 Pakistani rupees, for associations of persons from 10,000 to 50,000 rupees, and for individuals from 1,000 to 25,000 rupees. The new rates apply from July 1.