Finmin's adviser says tax collection on target, provinces bound to boost revenue

CARL: The government's revenue collection is on track for the current fiscal year, and provinces have legally committed to boosting their own tax collection, according to Khurram Schehzad, adviser to the finance minister. In an interview ahead of an upcoming International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission to Islamabad on September 23, Schehzad stated that the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has achieved its tax collection target for the first two months of the fiscal year, with July and August meeting the projected goals for the fiscal year 2027.

The fiscal pact signed between provinces and the federal government under the IMF programme now mandates that provinces optimize their tax collections instead of depending on guaranteed shares from the federal divisible pool. Schehzad cited the passage of agricultural income tax legislation by all four provincial assemblies last year as proof of the government's adherence to prior commitments.

He expressed optimism that the government will meet its target for the newly introduced retail tax scheme.