By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s tax authority extended the deadline for filing 2026 income tax returns by 15 days to Oct. 15, reversing itself hours after it dismissed a circulating notice of the same extension as fake.
The Federal Board of Revenue announced the change on Wednesday, hours before the Sept. 30 cutoff was due to expire. In a notice posted on its X account, the board said the extension covers people required to file by Sept. 30 and was granted on requests from trade bodies and tax bar associations. The extension was issued as FBR Circular No. 3 of 2026-27 under Section 214A of the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001.
Earlier in the day, an FBR spokesperson said on X that no such circular had been issued. The document in circulation was labelled Circular No. 4 of 2026-27 and dated Sept. 30, and it reused wording from last year’s official extension.
The episode follows a pattern. Last year the board twice extended the deadline, first to Oct. 15 and then to Oct. 31, after saying it wouldn’t. The statutory deadline is Sept. 30, but it has historically been moved two or three times, often to the end of October.
Trade bodies and tax professionals had pressed for more time, citing delays in issuing return forms and heavy online traffic. The Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry, led by President Atif Ikram Sheikh, formally asked for the deadline to be moved to Oct. 31. The Karachi Tax Bar Association sent a five-page letter to the Member Inland Revenue (Operations), citing late draft notifications and persistent glitches on the IRIS filing portal. Trade bodies also approached Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, according to FBR sources.
Filings have risen sharply. The FBR reported that returns for tax year 2026 reached 5.181 million as of Sept. 29, up 45.8% from 3.553 million a year earlier. Officials said about 1.3 million of the returns came from new taxpayers, as the board tries to widen a narrow tax base.
The extension comes as the cost of filing late has risen. Under the Finance Act 2026-27, the penalty tied to returning to the active taxpayers list has risen fivefold for companies, to Rs100,000 from Rs20,000. For associations of persons it rises to Rs50,000 from Rs10,000, and for individuals to Rs25,000 from Rs1,000. Late filers can also lose active-filer status and face higher withholding tax rates.
A day earlier, the FBR had warned of hefty penalties, additional tax liabilities and possible legal action against those who miss the deadline. A spokesperson said action could be taken against taxpayers who conceal assets or give incorrect details, and that the board may use bank accounts and other means to recover unpaid tax. The FBR said its data systems continuously receive information on taxpayers’ income, assets and financial transactions, and urged complete and accurate filings. It advised taxpayers to file through its website or the Tax Asaan app, or to call its helpline or visit a tax office.
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