FBR Includes AJK and GB Taxpayers in Active Taxpayers List

The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has decided to include the names of taxpayers of Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan in the Active Taxpayers’ List (ATL), where the person is already on the ATL of the Azad Jammu and Kashmir Central Board of Revenue or Gilgit-Baltistan Council Board of Revenue.

The decision has been notified through SRO 17(I) 206, amending the Income Tax Rules 2002, officials said.

Under the notification, any person whose name appears on the Active Taxpayers’ List of the Azad Jammu and Kashmir Central Board of Revenue or the Gilgit-Baltistan Council Board of Revenue will also be included in the federal Active Taxpayers’ List under Section 181A of the Income Tax Ordinance.

According to the FBR, the inclusion will apply where the individual’s temporary or permanent address is in Azad Jammu and Kashmir or Gilgit Baltistan.

In cases where a person has temporary or permanent addresses both in Pakistan and in AJK or Gilgit Baltistan, a verification process will be followed.

Under this process, the Commissioner Inland Revenue having jurisdiction based on the person’s temporary address on the CNIC will verify, through the IRIS system, that the individual does not have any employment or business in Pakistan. This verification will be carried out after inquiry and obtaining an undertaking from the taxpayer.

At the same time, the concerned commissioner of the AJK Central Board of Revenue or the Gilgit-Baltistan Council Board of Revenue will verify, through IRIS, that the person has employment or a sole business in AJK or Gilgit Baltistan.

The FBR clarified that if the Commissioner Inland Revenue later has reason to believe that such a person is required to file a return of income under Section 114 of the Income Tax Ordinance and fails to comply with a notice issued under the law, the individual’s name will be removed from the Active Taxpayers’ List.

Officials said the move is aimed at improving tax record integration and ensuring consistent treatment of taxpayers across Pakistan, Azad Jammu and Kashmir, and Gilgit Baltistan.