‘Estimated Current Market Value’: FBR removes column from tax return form

ISLAMABAD/KARACHI: The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) had removed “Estimated Market Value Column From Income Tax Return Form 2025” on the directions of the Prime Minister for Facilitation of Taxpayers.

Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif constituted a committee, headed by Federal Minister for Law, Senator Azam Nazeer Tarar to examine the new column introduced by FBR in the IRIS tax return requiring tax filers to declare the estimated fair market value of moveable and immovable assets, assess its implications for the tax filers, and recommend corrective measures or improvements.

The committee comprised of the Federal Minister for Petroleum, Minister of State for Finance, Attorney General for Pakistan, the SAPM on Coordination of Office of DPM, Secretary Finance, Chairman FBR, and Member Customs FBR.

The committee held a meeting on Friday 26 September. After detailed deliberations, the Committee recommended that the new column introduced in the IRIS tax return, requiring the declaration of estimated fair market value of moveable and immovable assets by the tax filer, may be removed in the interest of simplifying the tax filing process.

The recommendation was submitted to the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister has approved the recommendation of the Committee.

In pursuance of the directions of the Prime Minister, and keeping in view the difficulties being faced by taxpayers, the column of “Estimated Fair Market Value” has been removed from the Income Tax Return.

It is clarified that the said column had been introduced solely for the purpose of data collection to support the Economic Survey and had no bearing whatsoever on the assessment of income or tax liability.

The FBR said it remains committed to facilitating taxpayers in all possible ways and urges all eligible taxpayers to file their Income Tax returns correctly and with honesty at the earliest as the deadline for filing is 30th September, 2025.

Meanwhile, President Karachi Tax Bar Association (KTBA) Ali A Rahim appreciated the removal of the ‘Estimated Current Market Value’ column in income tax returns, saying the FBR has accepted the demand tabled during a joint press conference by PTBA and KTBA.

“We really appreciate the chairman FBR, who has accepted our demand and removed the column in income tax returns in the larger interest of the taxpayers,” Ali Rahim said, requesting to extend the deadline of the submission of income tax returns till October 31, 2025.

Needless to mention, the PTBA and KTBA had severely grilled the FBR against insertion of the aforesaid option in income tax returns and expressed fear that this insertion would not only hamper the number of return filers to exceed last year’s figures but also force the taxpayers, who submitted their returns under the deadline, to resubmit their returns.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2025