Tax rebate for full-time teachers: FBR directed to issue detailed IT explanatory circular

ISLAMABAD: Federal Tax Ombudsman (FTO) has directed the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to issue a detailed income tax explanatory circular for guidance of all concerned seeking tax rebate for full time teachers.

The FBR should make a clear and unambiguous decision explicitly providing in the law that this tax rebate was lawfully available till tax year 2024.

The FTO has issued these instructions to the FBR after receiving complaints for not allowing tax rebates admissible to full time teachers under sub-clause (2) of clause (1) of Part-III of the Second Schedule of the Income Tax Ordinance 2001.

The complainant is a salaried individual in the education department, Government of Sindh working as a High School teacher in Khairpur. As per him, he was entitled to 25 percent tax rebate available to full-time teachers, but this benefit was not allowed as can be observed from current pay slips.

According to an order of the FTO received at the FBR here on Wednesday, the FBR must update the withholding regime (section 149) by amending the PIFFRA module across the country.

The FBR has been directed to allow the rebate to the complainant upto Tax Year 2024 in the light of various decisions by the President of Pakistan in identical cases.

The FBR should issue an authentic version of all laws it administers with complete legislative history so that the correct position of laws for any period is available, FTO’s directions added.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2025