FBR Faces Uphill Task to Meet Tax Collection Target for July-March

The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) is facing an uphill task to meet the revenue collection target of Rs. 5.43 trillion for the period of July-March fiscal year 2022-23 (FY23). Sources told ProPakistani that a major shortfall is expected during the first nine months of FY23. The tax machinery collected Rs. 4,493 billion in the first eight months of the current fiscal year against the assigned target of Rs. 4,733 billion for July-February, reflecting a shortfall of Rs. 240 billion. After the imposition of taxes of Rs. 170 billion in the mini-budget, the new annual tax target of the FBR has been fixed at Rs 7.640 trillion. The FBR was required to adjust its monthly target for the remaining period of February-June, but the February target was based on the old projection of Rs. 7.47 trillion. The FBR collected Rs. 527.3 billion in February 2023 against the target of Rs. 527 billion, reflecting an increase of Rs. 0.3 billion. The FBR’s collection during July-February has been 18 percent higher compared to the collection of Rs. 3,820 billion in the same period of 2021-22 (FY22). Earlier on Wednesday, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) announced that all branches of banks including the National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) and field offices of SBP Banking Services Corporation (SBP-BSC) will observe extended banking hours on the 30th and 31st of March. In a press release, the central bank said that the decision has been taken on the request of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to facilitate the taxpayers in payment of government duties and taxes.