The National Assembly Standing Committee on Finance has approved a proposal to grant Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) a 15-year tax exemption on the import of new aircraft and spare parts as part of the airline’s privatization plan.
During the committee meeting, Secretary Privatization Commission briefed lawmakers on the proposed tax relief, explaining that all four bidders participating in the privatization process had requested exemptions on specific imports.
The privatization agreement includes tax relief on nine designated categories of imported items.
Committee Chairman Naveed Qamar questioned the duration of the exemption and its implications for PIA. In response, the Privatization Commission secretary said the 15-year tax relief had already been approved by both the government and Parliament. He added that the measure was not exclusive to PIA and that similar incentives could be extended to others if policymakers decide.
Qamar noted that rejecting the exemption could jeopardize the privatization process. Finance Secretary Imdad Ullah Bosal warned that withdrawing the tax relief could cause the PIA privatization deal to collapse and said reversing the decision would require approval from the IMF, which would be extremely difficult to obtain.
Minister of State for Finance Bilal Azhar Kayani told the committee that concerns raised by other airlines over similar tax incentives would be taken up with the IMF as discussions on the privatization package continue.
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