FBR receives record 5.2 million tax returns for 2024, up 76% from last year

The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has received a record 5.215 million tax returns for the 2024 tax year as of November 6, up by 76% from the 2.959 million returns received in the same period last year. 

Over the past week alone, 86,035 returns were filed with penalty payments for submissions made after the October 31 deadline.

The tax collected alongside these returns reached Rs132.259 billion, a substantial 71.47% rise from last year’s Rs77.132 billion during the same period. 

In an effort to accommodate taxpayers, the FBR extended the filing deadline twice; under the income tax ordinance, the original filing date is set for September 30.

In total, 6.695 million returns were filed for tax year 2023. 

This year, the FBR has added 1.346 million new returns from July to early November, with 660,000 new filers joining the system within this timeframe. 

The FBR also reported a 39% share of nil-filers among returns this year—2.051 million of total returns filed—compared to 35% last year. These nil returns are typically filed for single financial transactions or to access lower tax rates on the Active Taxpayers List.