The federal government will introduce dual pricing and taxation in the 2025-26 budget to discourage cash transactions and promote digital payments for buying petrol/diesel at fuel stations, retail, and other services, reported Dawn.
Petroleum prices notified by the government will apply only to digital payments. Cash transactions at fuel stations will carry an additional charge of Rs. 2–3 per litre. All fuel stations will be legally required to offer QR codes, card machines, and mobile payment options alongside cash.
The budget will also reduce income tax for salaried individuals by 1-1.5 percentage points.
Digital transactions will be subject to the standard 18 percent General Sales Tax (GST), while cash-based transactions will incur an additional 2 percent GST. All importers and manufacturers will be required to apply this pricing to their retailers and suppliers.
A legal requirement will be introduced requiring every business, regardless of size, to offer both cash and digital payment options. Digital payments through QR codes will be allowed to avoid the need for costly POS machines.
This new policy is expected to impose higher costs on undocumented transactions and encourage everyone to enter the tax net.
The dual-pricing mechanism will support that effort and improve traceability of petroleum supply and sales.
Stay Connected with ProPakistani
Get the latest business news, market insights, and economic updates wherever you prefer.
Add ProPakistani to Preferred Sources and see more of our stories in Google Search and Top Stories.
2% is card payment charges that merchant need to pay but all of the merchants takes 2% from cardholder/customer
so at the end its same
Indeed
another scheme destined to fail by aurangutan.
Why don’t thy give relief to card holders instead of charging more from cash payers? People are already depressed and in anger. Which such intensions govt compelling people to evade more taxes and opt for bad means. Why don’t govt work on increasing average household salary or income instead of covering their incompetence like previous govt?
What about the mass number of bikers who are students and raksha, taxi, chengchi holder..
Good initiative to bring every citizen in the tax net.
Its unfair. Most people in low income brackets don’t have digital means of payment. It was okay for restaurants I think, but fuel purchase on cash is going to hurt the common man.