The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has announced that telecom companies have agreed to block mobile SIMs of individuals who did not file their income tax returns for tax year 2023.
The telecom firms had initially expressed their reservations over mass SIM blockage of non-filers. The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) had, too, refused the FBR’s orders to proceed with the blocking of SIMs, saying it will adversely affect a large number of individuals, especially women and children whose SIMs are not registered in their names.
However, in an official statement, the FBR has announced that it held meetings with the PTA and telecom companies to discuss the matter. The objective of these meetings was to ensure the implementation of Income Tax General Order No. 1, which called for the SIMs of non-filers to be blocked. The order was issued under Section 114B of the Income Tax Ordinance 2001. The FBR has identified about 506,671 individuals who failed to file their income tax returns.
“After several deliberations, the telecom operators have agreed to initiate the manual blocking process in small batches until their systems are fully equipped to automate it,” the FBR says. “In this regard, the first batch comprising 5000 non-filers has been communicated to the telecom operators today for compliance regarding SIM blockage.”
The subsequent batches will sent to the telecom firms on a daily basis and the firms have also started sending out messages to non-filers to inform them regarding the blocking of their SIMs over unpaid taxes, the authority adds. Appreciating the PTA and telecom companies for their cooperation, the FBR says it “looks forward to continued collaboration to strengthen tax compliance in Pakistan”.
More than 15,000 non-filers’ mobile phone SIMs have been blocked since May 10, according to reports.
Last week, the PTA rejected the FBR’s directives to block SIMs of non-filers, stating that the measure was outside the telecom regulator’s jurisdiction. The PTA said the directives were not applicable under the existing legal framework and that the FBR’s order had no “legal binding effect”.
In addition, the PTA had cited various concerns regarding the blockage of mobile phone SIMs. The authority said the measure would deprive a large number of students and women of essential educational and healthcare services, and would undermine the confidence of investors in the telecom sector. The PTA requested the FBR to pursue alternative measures to ensure tax collection and stressed the order needed a comprehensive review by all stakeholders involved.
