A group from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) arrived in Pakistan to collaborate on tax reforms, focusing on broadening the tax base and increasing revenue. Over the course of about a week, the IMF delegation will engage with the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to discuss potential amendments to the tax policy.
Their aim is to introduce changes geared towards expanding the tax net and maximizing collections. This collaboration between the FBR and IMF intends to devise a framework, including a scheme for retailers, to potentially bring in an additional one million taxpayers, increasing the total to six million.
These proposed policy amendments are anticipated to be implemented in the upcoming budget. Notably, discussions on tax reforms are not anticipated to impact the disbursement of the loan tranche.
The IMF's Executive Board meeting, scheduled for December 7, is expected to consider and potentially approve the staff-level agreement with Pakistan, enabling the release of around US$700 million, totaling disbursements to almost US$1.9 billion under the program.
