The Federal Constitutional Court (FCC) will begin hearings on December 1 on multiple petitions challenging the super tax imposed under Sections 4B and 4C of the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001, as reported by Business Recorder.
The matter has been under litigation for years, with major corporations and the government contesting its scope and legality.
A three-member bench headed by Chief Justice Amin-ud-Din Khan, and comprising Justice Syed Hasan Azhar Rizvi and Justice Arshad Hussain, will hear the Federal Board of Revenue’s (FBR) appeals against earlier judgments of the Sindh, Lahore and Islamabad High Courts. The FCC registrar has issued notices directing all parties to ensure representation on the scheduled date.
Section 4B, introduced through the Finance Act 2015, imposed super tax on individuals, associations of persons and companies earning above Rs500 million during tax year 2015. Banking companies were taxed at 4 percent of income and other categories at 3 percent. The levy was introduced for the rehabilitation of temporarily displaced persons.
Section 4C was added through the Finance Act 2022 to target 13 sectors the government said had earned windfall profits. The measure effectively increased total income tax rates to 39 percent for banking, cement, iron and steel, sugar, oil and gas, fertiliser, LNG terminals, textiles, automobiles, cigarettes, beverages, chemicals and airlines. It applied to corporations earning more than Rs150 million in profit, with the FBR estimating potential revenue of Rs250 billion in FY23.
Following the 2022 amendment, several companies filed petitions in provincial high courts and the Islamabad High Court, challenging the levy and its applicability. A five-judge Supreme Court bench headed by Justice Amin-ud-Din Khan last heard the matter in October 2025 before it stood transferred to the FCC.
The transfer of the case to the FCC marks a key shift following the 27th Constitutional Amendment, which moved several matters, including earlier suo motu cases, to the newly created constitutional court.
