Telcos Collect Over Rs. 84 Billion in Taxes from Consumers in 9 Months

Mobile service providers in Pakistan collected a total of Rs. 84.24 billion in taxes from consumers between July 2024 and March 2025, according to data presented by the Ministry of Finance during the National Assembly’s question hour session. The Ministry stated that the taxes collected by the mobile companies are deposited directly into the national exchequer. The National Assembly was also told that the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has registered 2.39 million new taxpayers through recent tax amendment legislation. As of April 29, 2025, the number of individuals who submitted tax returns has reached 6.59 million. This figure includes 106,118 Association of Persons (AOPs) and 93,749 companies that have filed their returns. Details of the government’s privatization program were also presented in the session. The Ministry of Privatization informed lawmakers that the Cabinet Committee on Privatization approved the sell-off of 24 public sector entities in a meeting held on August 2, 2024. The privatization process will take place in three phases over the next five years. In the first phase, which is expected to be completed within a year, entities including Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), First Women Bank, House Building Finance Corporation, Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited (ZTBL), and Pakistan Engineering Company (PECO) will be privatized. Power distribution companies such as IESCO, GEPCO, FESCO, and Sindh Engineering Limited are also part of this initial phase. The Assembly was further informed that no nationwide poverty survey has been conducted since 2018. According to the Ministry of Planning, the last poverty survey found that 21.9 percent of the population was living below the poverty line. A new survey has been completed and will be published before the end of the next year, said Federal Minister Dr. Tariq Fazal Chaudhry.