Pakistan’s salaried class contributed more income tax than three major segments of the economy combined, exporters, retailers and property buyers and sellers, during the first seven months of the current fiscal year, underscoring the widening tax burden on documented workers ahead of the upcoming IMF review.
Data from the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) show that retailers, exporters and participants in the property market together paid Rs. 293 billion in income tax during July–January FY26, while salaried individuals alone contributed Rs. 315 billion over the same period.
The figures show that salaried workers paid Rs. 22 billion more than the three powerful and politically entrenched sectors combined. The development comes as Pakistan prepares for another IMF review mission, raising questions about whether the newly created Tax Policy Office at the Finance Ministry can persuade the Fund to ease the burden on salaried taxpayers in the FY27 budget.
According to official data, exporters paid Rs. 50 billion in income tax during the first seven months of FY26, down from Rs. 54 billion in the same period last year. Exporters also contributed Rs. 51 billion as a 1 percent advance tax, taking their total contribution to Rs. 101 billion in July–January, unchanged from a year earlier.
Retailers, who operate nearly three million outlets nationwide, paid Rs. 15 billion as advance tax under Section 236G on sales to distributors, dealers and wholesalers, compared with Rs. 13.5 billion a year earlier. Under Section 236H, they paid another Rs. 25 billion, up from Rs. 19 billion in the corresponding period last year.
The FBR collected Rs. 105 billion from the sale and transfer of immovable property under Section 236C during the first seven months of FY26, compared with Rs. 65 billion in the same period of FY25.
Under the FY26 budget, property transactions of up to Rs. 50 million are taxed at 4.5 percent for persons on the Active Taxpayer List (ATL). Transactions above Rs. 50 million and up to Rs. 100 million are taxed at 5 percent, while transactions exceeding Rs. 100 million face a rate of 5.5 percent. Non-ATL persons pay 11.5 percent, while late filers are charged between 7.5 percent and 9.5 percent, depending on the transaction size.
On the purchase and transfer of property, the FBR collected Rs. 47 billion during July–January FY26, down from Rs. 66 billion in the same period last year, after tax rates on purchases were reduced to 1.5 percent for ATL persons on transactions up to Rs. 50 million, 2 percent for amounts up to Rs. 100 million and 2.5 percent for transactions exceeding Rs. 100 million.
Meanwhile, salaried employees in both the public and private sectors paid Rs. 315 billion in income tax in the first seven months of FY26, compared with Rs. 284 billion a year earlier, highlighting the government’s growing reliance on payroll taxes to support revenues.
