Islamabad, October 8, 2025 — The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) is actively exploring various strategies to strengthen revenue collection and prevent a shortfall during the fiscal year 2025–26.
The move comes amid growing economic challenges and the aftermath of recent floods, which have impacted fiscal performance across multiple sectors.
According to official sources, the FBR recently briefed the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on its first-quarter collection performance. During July–September 2025, the FBR collected Rs2,885 billion against the assigned target of Rs3,083 billion, marking a shortfall of Rs198 billion. For September alone, the collection stood at Rs1,230 billion, falling short of the Rs1,368 billion monthly target.
Authorities fear that the overall shortfall could exceed Rs400 billion by the end of FY26, potentially forcing a downward revision in the annual tax collection target of Rs14.13 trillion. However, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb has ruled out the possibility of a mini-budget, assuring that no new tax measures are currently under consideration.
Senior FBR officials emphasized that ongoing reforms are aimed at enhancing institutional capacity rather than imposing new taxes. The department has initiated a large-scale recruitment drive, hiring around 1,600 auditors to improve its audit strength. Moreover, digital production monitoring systems are being rolled out across key industries such as sugar, fertilizer, cement, beverages, textiles, and tobacco to curb evasion and ensure accurate reporting.
The FBR’s Transformation Plan also focuses on integrating data sources, automating tax processes, and leveraging artificial intelligence to identify high-risk taxpayers. These reforms are expected to boost transparency, accountability, and efficiency.
Thanks to these initiatives, Pakistan’s tax-to-GDP ratio improved from 8.8 percent in FY24 to 10.24 percent in FY25. Furthermore, the Faceless Customs Appraisement project has increased revenue per Goods Declaration (GD) by 17.3 percent. Enforcement-driven tax revenues have also risen eightfold over the previous year, underscoring the FBR’s commitment to modernizing the taxation system and sustaining fiscal growth.