ISLAMABAD: The Federal Bureau of Revenue (FBR) announced on Sunday it had surpassed its revenue collection target of Rs9,252 billion ($33.36 billion) by collecting Rs9,306 billion ($33.55 billion) for the previous fiscal year, saying it is ready to achieve the ambitious revenue target for the current fiscal year.
Pakistan’s narrow tax base and enduring tax evasion issue leads to the problem of insufficient revenue collection for the country’s fragile economy each year. The shortfall exacerbates the government’s tendency to run a high fiscal deficit, often financed through domestic and international borrowing, increasing the nation’s debt burden.
The FBR announced on social media platform X it had “comfortably achieved” its revenue collection target for the previous fiscal year, collecting Rs9,306 billion ($33.55 billion) in total and thus exceeding its target by Rs54 billion ($190 million).
“The growth in revenue collection is 30 percent as compared to the last year,” the FBR wrote on X.
The FBR said it had collected Rs1,183 billion ($4.27 billion) in June alone, adding that the target was despite imports being compressed from $55 billion ($200 million) to $53 billion ($200 million).
“For the FY 2023-24, FBR collected income tax amounting to Rs4,528 billion ($16.33 billion) as compared to Rs3,270 billion ($11.79 billion) during the same period last year, depicting an increase of 38.4 percent,” the tax authority wrote.
“Similarly, under the head sales tax Rs3,098 billion ($11.17 billion) was collected as compared to Rs2,593 billion ($9.35 billion).”
The FBR said it collected Rs576 billion [$2.08 billion] in Federal Excise Duty (FED) compared to Rs370 billion ($1.33 billion) last year while the revenue collection under the Customs Duty tax head was recorded at Rs1,104 billion ($3.98 billion) compared to Rs931 billion ($3.36 billion) last year.
“FBR collected Rs6,128 billion ($22.09 billion) in domestic taxes and Rs3,178 billion ($11.46 billion) in import taxes, thereby depicting a growth of 37 percent in domestic taxes and 18 percent in imports despite import compression during the current financial year,” it said.
The tax authority said it had disbursed refunds amounting to Rs469 billion during FY 2023-24 compared to Rs331 billion ($1.19 billion) during FY 2022-23, with the amount being 42 percent more than last year.
“In addition to exceeding the annual revenue target, the Tax System of Pakistan also witnessed significant structural improvements, which were a direct result of the interest of the Honorable Prime Minister and Finance Minister,” it said.
The FBR said that despite all odds, it remains committed to achieving targets “under all circumstances.”
“It is reiterated that for the assigned revenue collection target for the FY 2024-25, the team FBR is ready to deliver and put in their best efforts to achieve it and serve the nation,” it added.
Pakistan has set a challenging tax revenue target of Rs13 trillion ($46.66 billion) for the current fiscal year, a near 40 percent jump from the previous one, to strengthen the case for a new bailout deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Pakistan’s new administration has decided to digitalize the tax collection system to prevent leakages, even as a large segment of the national economy remains undocumented.
