Summary Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said FBR's annual tax collection exceeded Rs13 trillion, attributing the record revenue to reforms and improved fiscal management.
ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) – Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said on Wednesday that the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) had collected more than Rs13 trillion in taxes during the fiscal year, describing it as the highest annual revenue collection in Pakistan's history.
Addressing senior officials, including the FBR chairman, board members, chief commissioners and chief collectors at the FBR headquarters, the finance minister said the achievement reflected the success of reforms implemented over the past two and a half years.
Aurangzeb said Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had congratulated FBR officials on their performance and would meet them in the near future to acknowledge their efforts.
He noted that when the reform process began, annual FBR tax collections stood at around Rs6 trillion, adding that the figure had now risen to more than Rs13 trillion, nearly doubling within a relatively short period.
The finance minister also claimed that Pakistan's fiscal deficit had fallen to its lowest level in history, while the country's primary fiscal surplus had reached a record high.
He said tighter control over government spending, combined with significant growth in tax revenues, had played a key role in achieving the government's fiscal targets.
Aurangzeb further stated that the FBR issued nearly Rs600 billion in tax refunds during the last fiscal year, representing a 21% increase compared with the previous year. He added that Rs13.5 billion in refunds were processed on June 30 alone, calling it a record single-day refund.
The figures and fiscal performance outlined by the finance minister reflect the government's position and have not been independently verified.
