ISLAMABAD: The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has decided to move against wealthy individuals suspected of tax evasion, focusing on those who openly display lavish lifestyles on social media while underreporting assets and income in their tax filings.
The move comes after the FBR discovered that only 1,100 people across Pakistan declared assets worth Rs1 billion, while just 100 individuals reported wealth above Rs3 billion. With a population of 240 million, the figures raised serious concerns about massive underreporting.
A dedicated team under the Intelligence and Investigation Inland Revenue Service will now monitor social media to identify individuals showcasing expensive lifestyles that do not match their declared income. Information gathered from event management companies has already revealed hundreds of such cases, including weddings where as much as Rs148 million was spent, with some firms managing multiple such events every month.
The FBR also flagged a showroom owner with billions in assets but negligible declared income, along with a real estate tycoon who built malls in Islamabad yet reported little in his returns. To strengthen enforcement, 450 inspectors have been deployed nationwide to verify declarations and conduct ground surveys.
In addition, the FBR is hiring over 1,600 auditors this year to strengthen audits and expand its net. The tax authority aims to recover over Rs400 billion through stricter enforcement to meet its collection target of Rs14.13 trillion.
With the government facing a revenue shortfall of around Rs100 billion in the first quarter of the fiscal year, the crackdown is seen as a decisive step to plug leaks, catch high-profile evaders, and create a deterrent against future misdeclarations.
