The number of income tax returns filed by September 30, 2026 rose 45 percent year over year to 5.77 million, but tax paid with the returns fell 7 percent to Rs. 77.3 billion from Rs. 83.3 billion last year.

According to FBR data, returns increased by about 1.79 million from 3.98 million a year earlier. Non-salaried individuals accounted for four-fifths of the increase, with their returns rising 60 percent to 3.81 million.

However, around 39 percent of returns filed this year were nil returns, broadly unchanged from last year. Returns declaring income above the taxable threshold increased 37 percent to nearly 2.5 million.

Tax paid with returns by individuals increased 11 percent to Rs. 34.5 billion, while payments by associations of persons rose 16 percent to Rs. 3.7 billion. However, tax paid by companies fell from Rs. 49 billion to Rs. 39.1 billion.

Payment filers, whose returns show tax paid, increased 38 percent to 3.35 million. Among non-salaried individuals, payment filers rose by about 50 percent to 1.75 million.

The data shows a sharp increase in tax return filing over the past three years, with returns rising from 1.92 million in September 2023 to 5.77 million this year. The FBR is now expected to use risk-based audits to check declarations against available data.