ISLAMABAD: The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has allowed its Anti-Smuggling/Enforcement formations to use tampered vehicles above 1800cc for operational activities at border areas from April 2026.
The FBR has implemented this major decision through a customs general order (CGO) 4 of 2026 issued here on Saturday.
The FBR’s notification revealed that the use of vehicles above 1800 cc may also be authorised for hard-area formations of Appraisement under Chief Collectors of Customs, Baluchistan, including Gwadar, Border Point 250 (Gabd), Mand, Panjgur, Taftan, Katagar, Dalbandin, Chaman, and under Chief Collector, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, including Angoor Ada, Ghulam Khan, Kharlachi, Torkham, Gilgit, Sost, similar formations of Transit Trade, or any other border station/hard area specified by the Board.
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In order to regulate the use of confiscated vehicles with tampered, cut-and-weld chassis numbers (hereinafter referred to as tampered vehicles) and their sale in a transparent manner, and to bring uniformity in their disposal, the Federal Board of Revenue has prescribed the following procedure, effective from 1st April 2026.
The following categories of departments shall be eligible for the purchase of tampered vehicles: (i) Government and Semi-Government departments (hereinafter referred to as eligible government departments); (ii) Government-owned and semi-government educational, medical, and scientific institutions.
The FBR clarified that the tampered vehicles shall, in no case, be sold to any individual in personal capacity.
The FBR has further notified that the sale/disposal of tampered vehicles to government and semi-government organizations shall be made as per specified procedure, FBR added.
Formations under the Customs Wing of FBR shall have priority for allocation of tampered vehicles for official use under Section 182 of the Customs Act, 1969 read with Section 187A ibid.
All formations shall submit their proposals, with justification for the number of vehicles required for official/operational use, commensurate with the nature of duties assigned and the numerical strength of officers/HR posted in each formation.
The list of requirements of each formation shall be placed before a committee, headed by the Member (Customs Operations) for review, final determination, and approval.
All formations shall conduct a quarterly review of their requirements for tampered vehicles and, in case of any change in the required number of vehicles, shall submit requests for review and fresh approval/allocation to the Member (Customs Operations). Relevant formations shall also be allowed suitable replacement in cases where allotted tampered vehicles are dismantled or no longer remain roadworthy.
The Customs Wing, FBR, shall develop a comprehensive digitized module for record-keeping and reporting of confiscated tampered vehicles by relevant Customs formations.
After confiscation, particulars along with forensic reports of the chassis plate, photographs, condition, and litigation status of each tampered vehicle shall be uploaded to the system.
Access to the information/digital system regarding confiscated tampered vehicles available for sale to other organizations shall also be provided to the Cabinet Division.
At the end of their serviceable life, tampered vehicles may be dismantled upon recommendation of the department to which such vehicles were sold.
The department having custody shall return the vehicle to the custodian department, ie, Pakistan Customs.
The Buses/Coasters /Vans and other vehicles which could not be disposed of through sale to government/semi-government departments shall be offered free of cost to government-owned educational, medical, and scientific institutions.
These vehicles shall be allocated on written recommendations from relevant ministries. However, other terms of sale shall be followed in letter and spirit.
Any vehicle which could not be disposed of through the above process within 5 years after its first availability shall be dismantled in line with the government’s approved process of dismantling, the FBR added.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2026
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