Telecom operators agreed to manually blocking the SIMs of non-filers in small batches after week-long discussions with tax authorities.
As per a news report, this decision came after the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) conducted key meetings with the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) and telecom companies, based on Income Tax General Order No. 1, outlined under Section 114 B of the Income Tax Ordinance 2001.
Earlier, on April 30, the FBR identified 506,671 individuals who did not file their 2023 tax returns. As a result, their mobile SIMs are set to be blocked.
Initially, telecom providers resisted this measure, which was legislated by parliament. Following multiple discussions, telecom companies consented to start the blocking process manually in stages until they can fully automate the system.
The first group, consisting of 5,000 non-filers, was notified on Friday for immediate SIM blocking. Further lists will be sent daily.
Telecom companies have also begun alerting the affected individuals through messages about the impending SIM blockades.
These efforts are part of a broader initiative to enforce tax compliance and improve tax collection.
The FBR highlighted its appreciation for the cooperation from all parties involved and emphasised its commitment to ongoing collaboration to enhance tax compliance across Pakistan.
Additionally, the FBR has targeted 2.4 million potential taxpayers not previously recorded, issuing notices to these individuals.
From this group, over 500,000 have been chosen for SIM blocking if they reported taxable income in any of the past three years but failed to file returns for 2023.
The FBR reported receiving 4.2 million tax returns by March 1 this year, a slight increase from the 3.8 million returns in the same period last year. In the 2022 tax year, the FBR received 5.9 million income tax returns.
