ISLAMABAD — More than 5.77 million income tax returns were filed in Pakistan by September 30, 2026, an increase of nearly 45% compared with the same date last year.
According to Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) figures, taxpayers submitted 5,767,384 returns, up from 3,980,692 a year earlier. That is an increase of almost 1.79 million filings.
The growth reflects a substantial expansion in the number of people submitting tax information to the government.
The number of returns filed by the end of September has risen sharply in recent years. It stood at about 1.86 million in 2022 and 3.72 million in 2024 before reaching this year’s 5.77 million.
Traders, professionals and other non-salaried taxpayers accounted for much of the latest increase, according to the figures reported with the FBR data.
Filing a tax return means declaring income and other required financial information to the tax authorities. It does not necessarily mean every person who files pays the same amount of tax.
The FBR has also reported Rs3.083 trillion in total federal tax collection during the first quarter of the 2026–27 financial year. That amount includes several types of federal taxes.
The government subsequently extended the Tax Year 2026 return-filing deadline from September 30 to October 15 for eligible taxpayers.
The latest filing figures mark progress in efforts to document economic activity and bring more taxpayers into Pakistan’s formal tax system.