Govt sets up two committees to address budget woes

ISLAMABAD: The federal government has formed two anomaly committees to examine business-related and technical issues in the Finance Bill 2026 for the 2026-27 fiscal year, according to official notifications issued by the Ministry of Finance.

Under the arrangement, one committee has been tasked with addressing concerns linked to the business community, while a second body will review technical ambiguities in the bill. Both panels have been asked to submit their recommendations, along with shortcomings identified in the proposed law, to the Ministry of Finance’s Tax Policy Office by June 20, 2026.

Business-related committee

According to the first notification, a high-level anomaly committee has been constituted to identify and remove ambiguities and deficiencies in the Finance Bill that affect the business sector. The committee will examine concerns and proposals from the business community and prepare actionable recommendations.

The committee will be headed by Javed Qureshi, Chief Executive Officer of the Pakistan Business Council. Its co-chairs are Dr Najeeb Ahmed Memon, Director General of the Tax Policy Office; Hamid Atiq Sarwar, Member Strategic Transformation at the Federal Board of Revenue; Ishad Javed, Member Customs Policy; and Sajjad Tasleem Azam, Member Inland Revenue Policy. Representatives of major business and trade organisations have also been included in the panel.

Technical review panel

A separate special anomaly committee has also been notified to deal with technical objections and ambiguities in the Finance Bill. According to the second notification, this committee will review technical proposals and objections submitted by the business community and other stakeholders before giving its recommendations to the FBR.

This technical committee will be led by chartered accountant Muhammad Raza. Dr Najeeb Ahmed Memon, Hamid Atiq Sarwar, Sajjad Tasleem Azam and Ishad Javed will serve as co-chairs on this panel as well. Its membership includes experts from the tax, customs, trade and business sectors, along with chartered accountants, representatives of tax bar associations and officials of the National Tariff Commission.

The notifications formalising the two committees have been issued by the ministry as the government moves to review objections and proposals connected to the Finance Bill ahead of the new fiscal year.