How to File Income Tax Return in Pakistan – A comprehensive guide to Taxation

How to File Income Tax Return in Pakistan is understood as a complex task for majority of the taxpayers in Pakistan. Beingfiler, provides the ease of access way to file your tax returns efficiently and accurately.
Every individual who has a Pakistani CNIC or Pakistani Citizen or National has to file his annual tax return. Pakistani citizens even if they are tax residents of some other country and are living outside abroad also have to file their returns in Pakistan.
In response to FBR move to promote tax filing culture in the country, around 1.93M tax returns were filed this year by the end of Sep, 2023 which is 0.06M more than the 1.87M returns submitted in the previous year. The simplified technology solution for filing tax return is gaining the trust of the public in FBR.
Following are the simplified steps for filing the tax returns.
Filing Tax Return – A Civic Responsibility
Registration with IRIS
IRIS is the online tax filing portal by FBR. For a new user, the first step is to register with IRIS. Upon successful registration, one just has to login to IRIS system with the system-generated username and password.
The person already having a registration number or NTN (National Tax Number) should enroll at IRIS to get their login information.
The portal provides you the reset password option if someone forgets his password. For a new password system verify the user by sending the temporary codes to the registered mobile and email address. Once the sent codes are successfully entered, the user can set a new password.
It’s advisable to keep the username and password safe to avoid any illegal and unauthorized access to your IRIS account.
For Accurate and error free filing of your tax return, we are just a click away at beingfiler.


Submitting your Income Tax Return – How to File Income Tax Return in Pakistan
IRIS provides users with an online Return of Income Form and a Wealth Statement. Both the form and the statement are automated and are to be filled and submitted online by the taxpayers. The return of income form consists of different sections with the purpose of declaring all income resources by the taxpayers. The form then auto-calculates the tax amount applicable to the person. The taxpayer then either enters the amount of tax already paid or pays the applicable tax by generating the PSID against his credentials.

Return of Income Form and Wealth Statement
The taxpayer is also required to furnish the wealth statement which is said to be a statement of assets and liabilities of the person for that particular tax year. Any variation in assets or liabilities from the previous year must be justified by the tax income for that particular year.

Wealth Statement Reconciliation
The assets and liability statement must be reconciled before the submission of the income tax return and wealth statement for the said tax year i.e. the wealth of the current tax year must be decreased/increased from the previous year’s wealth by the same amount as the tax year net income has dropped/raised.
After the reconciliation of the wealth statement, the person needs to verify the declaration by entering the PIN code. The PIN code if forgotten, can be changed from the Change Option on top right corner.
Upon successful submission, both the Return of Income Tax Form and the Wealth Statement are moved from the draft folder to the Completed Task of the IRIS system.

Tax Returns of Salaried Persons
The person having salary as the sole income source, or the person who has the salary and other income sources but more than 50% of the income is from salary can submit their tax returns via Declaration Form 114(I) on the IRIS portal

Revision of Income Tax Return and Wealth Statement
In case of any mistake and wrong submission of the tax return, the return can be revised within 5 years of submission subject to approval for said revision. The application for revision can be submitted online in IRIS portal.
Though the wealth statement can be revised without the prior permission but before the receipt of notice under subsection (9) u/s 122 of IT Ordinance 2001.

Tax Return Filing After Deadline
Despite FBR normally extends the deadline for submission of annual tax returns like it was last extended to Oct 31, 2023, the system still allows the taxpayers to file their returns even after the lapse of the last date of submission of tax returns. The person can even file the tax returns of previous years if he wants to do so.
However, there are consequences for the late submission of tax returns
- Penalty payable for late submission of tax returns
- Excluding the name from the Active Tax Payers List (ATL) till the payment of the penalty
It is thus recommended to file the tax return before the expiry of the deadline.
It is important to note that while the deadline is approaching the individuals or companies explaining their need, can request a 15-day extension to the commissioner by logging in to the IRIS account. In anticipation, these extensions are typically granted but might have the chances of rejections. So, it is advisable to file the tax returns before the deadline is approached.
Record Retention for Tax Returns
The taxpayers are required to retain their income tax record for a period of 6 (Six) years for a given tax year.
Tax Filing Obligation
As per Income Tax Ordinance 2001, a person may be penalized or prosecuted by the provision of law if fails to file the income tax returns.
Taxpayer Privacy
The taxpayer’s personal information is not disclosed or shared with anyone except the tax officers dealing with tax records of the person.
FAQs
Conclusion
A major portion of the tax payers are confused about filing tax returns and they are seeking the answer to How to File Income Tax Return in Pakistan. Beingfiler make your tax returns easier, with just providing a little information and is a single click away.
In response to the FBR initiative for documenting the economy, a surge has been noticed in Pakistan’s tax return submissions, which reached 1.93 million by the end of September 2023, highlighting the growing acceptance of the simplified IRIS online portal by FBR. The user-friendly process, emphasizing timely filing, which aims to foster a tax-compliant culture. Non-compliance to file the income tax returns may result in penalties. The tax deadline reinforces the importance of timely submission of returns, avoiding late penalties, and helping in proper retention of tax records. The tax authorities ensure the privacy of taxpayer information and is shared solely with authorized tax officers.