ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday directed the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to provide digital tax services in Urdu and other regional languages to improve taxpayer accessibility and compliance.
The move aims to make platforms like the Auto Tax System, Digital Invoicing System, IRIS, and other FBR applications more user-friendly for citizens across Pakistan.
Chairing a weekly review meeting at the Prime Minister’s Office, Shehbaz Sharif emphasized the need to strengthen enforcement mechanisms, expand automated monitoring across productive sectors, and enhance transparency in tax collection.
He lauded the economic team for inducting experts into the Pakistan Revenue Automation Limited (PRAL) executive team on merit, transforming the organization into a more efficient institution.
The prime minister also instructed the Drug Regulatory Authority to complete the serialization of medicines manufactured in Pakistan as soon as possible. Officials highlighted that modern monitoring tools such as video analytics, unit counting, barcode scanning, stamping, and serialization are already being used in sugar, cement, cigarette, and fertilizer factories, contributing to higher tax revenues.
Similar monitoring systems are being introduced in textile, leather, paper, automobile, and beverage sectors, expected to generate billions of rupees in additional revenue. Amendments to the Alternative Dispute Resolution Committees law have also been implemented to enhance transparency and restore taxpayers’ confidence, with an estimated Rs80 billion expected in tax collection by June 30, 2026.
The meeting reported that tax case decisions between July 2025 and January 2026 resulted in Rs102.9 billion recovered for the national exchequer, with pending cases projected to yield Rs369 billion by June 2026. PRAL’s digital invoicing system has generated invoices worth Rs800 billion between January and February 2026, targeting Rs3 trillion by April.
Officials also briefed participants on the completion of a modern FBR data center, the introduction of digital cargo tracking systems, including the e-Bilty system, and a coordinated GPS tracking system for petroleum products to curb smuggling.
The meeting was attended by Federal Ministers Muhammad Aurangzeb, Ahsan Iqbal Cheema, Dr Musadik Malik, Attaullah Tarar, Shaza Fatima Khawaja, Ali Pervez Malik, Minister of State for Finance Bilal Azhar Kayani, the Attorney General of Pakistan, the FBR chairman, and senior officials of relevant institutions.
