KARACHI: Pakistan hopes to sign a staff-level agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) by next month after presenting an Rs18.877 trillion ($67.76 billion) federal budget and setting a revenue collection target of more than 40 percent for the next fiscal year.
Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb on Wednesday unveiled the first budget of the newly elected administration of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, which is expected to play a pivotal role in Pakistan’s negotiations with the IMF to unlock yet another loan program.
“The talks with the IMF are going on in a positive direction and we are hopeful that in July we would move toward a staff-level agreement,” the minister told journalists during a post-budget media briefing in Islamabad.
The South Asian nation has set an ambitious revenue collection target of about Rs13 trillion ($46.55 billion) for the next fiscal year. This target is over 40 percent compared to the current fiscal year ending on June 30.
The government has projected the budget deficit to be 6.9 percent of the GDP while the primary surplus is expected to be at 1 percent of GDP. To achieve the tax collection target, the minister said the government’s basic principle was to expand the tax base.
“The current tax-to-GDP ratio is simply unsustainable,” Aurangzeb said, adding he wanted to increase it to 13 percent in the next three years.
The government measures are estimated to generate about Rs1.761 trillion through new revenue measures while income tax rates and slabs changes will unlock additional revenues of Rs70 billion from the salaried segment.
However, Aurangzeb insisted the salaried class would not be burdened.
“If you look on an individual level, the burden is not that heavy,” he said.
The government will collect about Rs350 billion from exporters and about Rs200 billion are estimated to be collected from retailers and wholesalers by increasing the advance sales tax.
The finance minister said the increase in petroleum development levy (PDL) would be gradually increased to Rs80 per liter and linked with international oil prices.
He said the government’s aim was to remove the concept of non-filers from the country by making them pay a higher rate of tax on transactions.
“I want to remove this concept of non-filers. I think Pakistan is the only country that has the non-filer category,” he added.
The finance minister said the government was in process of digitizing the country’s tax collection system operated by the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to end the undocumented economy.
“The process of digitization of FBR is underway and it will help in the documentation of the economy and digitizing finances,” he said, adding the digitization would reduce human intervention and corruption.
Asked about tax collection from retail outlets, he said the government would relaunch points of sales (POS) to minimize the cash flow that is about Rs9 trillion in circulation.
Defending the massive allocation of Rs1.5 trillion for the Public Sector Development Program (PSDP), the finance minister argued that the government wanted to ensure that ongoing projects were completed as 81 percent of funds were allocated for schemes that were being implemented.
Responding to a question about the privatization program of the incumbent government, he said the government was working with all stakeholders.
“PIA [Pakistan International Airlines] and Islamabad Airport are already up for privatization and transactions are expected to be completed by August,” he informed, adding the Lahore and Karachi airports would be privatized next on the prime minister’s direction.
Pakistan aims for July IMF agreement after presenting $67.76 billion federal budget
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Pakistan aims for July IMF agreement after presenting $67.76 billion federal budget
- Muhammad Aurangzeb remains optimistic about a positive outcome in the IMF talks, eyes 40% revenue increase
- The finance minister declares current tax-to-GDP ratio unsustainable, says he wants 13% increase in three years
Pakistan approves upgrades to national ID cards in push to strengthen digital ecosystem
- The amendments allow for QR-based verification, authentication controls, biometric expansion, and card format updates
- The measures advance integrated digital governance through National Data Exchange Layer and broader digital ID ecosystem
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has notified amendments to the National Identity Card and Pakistan Origin Card rules and introduced QR-based verification and stronger fraud controls, the National Database and Regulatory Authority (NADRA) said on Tuesday, amid efforts to strengthen the country’s digital ecosystem.
The amendments modernize Pakistan’s identity document framework by legally embedding QR-based verification, strengthening authentication controls across digital services, expanding biometric recognition and updating card formats for key citizen categories.
A core reform is the statutory introduction of the Quick Response (QR) code as a defined security and verification feature, authorizing the use of “QR code or any other technological feature” in lieu of current microchip enabling NADRA to adopt evolving verification technologies without repeated rule amendments.
This QR-enabled capability directly strengthens Pakistan’s Digital ID ecosystem and supports interoperability through the National Data Exchange Layer, according to the national database regulator.
“This establishes a robust legal basis for quick and secure verification of identity credentials in both offline and online environments,” NADRA said.
“This will also enable all citizens to carry similar card instead of currently prevalent two types of national identity cards one of which is with microchip and the other without.”
Pakistani state media reported in August that the country was developing digital identities of all its citizens to enable secure and efficient payments. The measures came as part of a broader effort to digitize the economy for greater transparency.
QR-based credentials allow rapid front-end validation of identity attributes in service delivery settings, while also enabling back-end systems to confirm authenticity and status through trusted exchanges. This is expected to improve speed, transparency and consistency of identity verification across government entities and regulated sectors, reduce manual handling, and lower the risk of fraud and impersonation, according to NADRA.
The amendments also strengthen the enforcement effect of card suspension. The Rules now clarify that where a card is suspended, all verification, authentication and related services linked to that card shall stand suspended forthwith. This closes a key risk area by ensuring that once a card is suspended, it cannot continue to be used through digital verification channels or institutional authentication processes.
“The amendments also introduce standardized identification for residents of Azad Jammu and Kashmir by requiring an inscription indicating ‘Resident of Azad Jammu and Kashmir’ in the manner specified by the Authority, thereby ensuring uniform geographic identification on the document,” NADRA said.
“Overall, these amendments strengthen the legal and technological foundations of Pakistan’s identity system by enabling secure QR-based verification, reinforcing the integrity of digital authentication services, improving biometric assurance,” it said. “They also advance readiness for integrated digital governance by supporting structured interoperability through the National Data Exchange Layer and a broader Digital ID ecosystem.”
