The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) came under intense criticism in the Senate Standing Committee on Finance on Monday after lawmakers accused the tax authority of withholding key information related to tax concessions granted to industries operating in the former FATA/PATA regions.
Senator Dilawar Khan alleged that the FBR was failing to provide Parliament with the requested data, calling it an unprecedented move.
“For the first time in history, the FBR is hiding information. Pakistan is not a kingdom where any institution can refuse to answer Parliament,” he said during the committee meeting.
The senator also questioned consumption certificates issued to the ghee and steel industries, alleging that products receiving tax concessions under the former FATA/PATA incentive scheme were actually consumed in cities including Lahore, Gujranwala, Faisalabad, and Sialkot, allowing businesses to benefit from tax exemptions that were never intended for those markets.
According to FBR officials, complete tax return and payment data for fiscal year 2025-26 will only become available after July 18, following the completion of return filing and reconciliation. The officials assured the committee that detailed figures would be presented at the next meeting.
The committee granted the FBR time until July 20-22 to compile and submit the requested information.
Convener Senator Saifullah Abro questioned how Rs. 154 billion worth of imported textile products could have been declared for use in the former FATA/PATA regions. He said the committee’s objective was to identify tax leakages and assist the FBR in recovering revenue lost through tax evasion.
FBR officials replied that only Rs. 5.9 billion out of the Rs. 154 billion in textile imports had so far been recovered, while scrutiny of the remaining Rs. 145 billion was still in progress. They added that several importers had obtained stay orders from the Peshawar High Court, which directed the FBR to hear the affected businesses before proceeding with recovery.
Senator Talha Mahmood also questioned why consumption certificates for Rs. 62 billion worth of imported tea were missing from official records.
Committee members urged the FBR to devise a legal mechanism to share broader tax data with Parliament without violating taxpayer confidentiality. They stressed that the committee’s purpose was to strengthen tax collection, detect tax evasion, and safeguard public revenue rather than target any individual or business.
