FBR chairman orders time-bound procedure to expedite income tax refunds

Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) Chairman Rashid Mehmood Langrial has told officials to draft a time-bound procedure for handling income tax refunds, Profit reported. The directive followed a meeting with office-bearers of the Karachi Tax Bar Association (KTBA), which argued that compliant taxpayers often have no idea when excess tax will come back to them. The association also asked for prompt settlement of income tax and sales tax refund claims.

The association pressed for full implementation of an FBR letter dated September 23, 2026, aimed at clearing pending applications to revise returns and claim refunds under Section 7E. On foreign investment, it wanted simpler procedures and asked that non-resident taxpayers face no obligations beyond those set by law. It also objected to Sales Tax General Order No. 25/2026, which obliges registered persons to issue stock transfer notes when goods shift between premises of taxpayers, and officials agreed to examine that through internal consultations.

The equipment and records held by tax authorities were another concern, with the chairman reportedly stressing early release, according to the KTBA. The association also wants due process before recovery of advance income tax begins, along with reasonable time for compliance. It flagged delays in income tax return notifications, recurring technical faults on the IRIS portal and problems with bulk data uploads.