Aurangzeb tells Faisalabad businessmen: Digital tax reforms a must to boost revenue
FAISALABAD: A fully digitalised taxation system is imperative to eliminate leakages in addition to enhancing collection without creating any hassle to the taxpayers, said Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb.
Addressing the business community here at Faisalabad Chamber of Commerce & Industry (FCCI) on Friday, he said that this is not a post-budget conference but actually the beginning of preparations for the budget for FY 2027-2028.
He said that the finance division is responsible for budget preparation while the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) would look after the matters of tax administration and tax collection only.
Underlining the importance of the private sector, he said that it has to lead the economy to put Pakistan on a growth trajectory.
About financing, he said that the interest rate has been trimmed from 22 percent to 11.5 percent. “It could be further brought down if the Iran conflict is resolved immediately,” he opined.
About funds allocated for exporters in the budget, he said that it is the only incremental amount while more concessions would be given to them in the next budget.
Quoting electricity tariff, he said that all cross-subsidies have been eliminated, which would further bring down the rate of electricity.
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He said that discussion was continuing on taxation and as a result advance and super taxes have been eliminated.
He appreciated the performance of the nestling IT sector and said that it has made exports up to USD 4.5 billion and now the government is trying to provide them with an efficient eco system.
He further said that the government is encouraging the construction sector but the system for the sale and purchase of files only would not be allowed.
About automation, the federal minister said that records of every individual are available with NADRA and FBR, which would be integrated to eliminate leakage of taxes.
He said that the process of digitalisation has been started from the sugar sector through which the government collected an additional Rs 60 billion sales tax.
He said that a new medium term tax strategy would be introduced for the SME sector which would give substantial relief in tariff regime to this segment.
He further said that regulatory duty and advance tax have been eliminated on import of agricultural machinery.
He underlined the disastrous impact of population explosion and urged upon the business community and chambers to play their role in controlling the unbridled population.
He further said that no compromise would be allowed on national security. However, regional trade may witness a positive trend after the resolution of Iran conflict.
He said he was trying to get maximum tariff relief from America which would help Pakistan to enhance its exports to this country.
He directed his staff to negotiate with MD National Tariff Commission to impose anti-dumping duty on imports which were hampering domestic production. He said that all concerned stakeholders and FCCI representatives would be taken into the loop to resolve the issue amicably.
He further said that he would talk to the Governor State Bank of Pakistan to allocate a separate and dedicated amount for the SME sector to cater to its financial needs.
Earlier, President FCCI Farooq Yousaf Sheikh in his address of welcome said that most of our recommendations have been accepted while negotiations are still continuing on the pending issues.
He clarified that chambers and government are two wheels of the same vehicle as their interests are identical and hence there should be no conflict between them.
He said that earlier, FCCI was ignored in budget formulation but this year almost all stakeholders have been taken into the loop.
He said that this consultation proved very productive and the issues relating to micro fabric and valuation were resolved within a short span of one and half month.
He also invited the Federal Minister to participate in the Faisalabad Expo scheduled to be held in Lahore Expo Center on July 24, 25 and 26.
Engineer Asim Munir Vice President (VP) FCCI, former President Dr Khurram Tariq, Muzammal Sultan, Rehan Naseem Bharara, Rizwan Ahsraf, Rana Sikandar Azam, Arif Ehsan Malik, Mian Muhammad Latif, Bao Akram, Hajji Muhammad Aslam Bhalli, Khurram Mukhtar, Mian Tanveer Ahmad, Muhammad Ahmad, Waheed Khaliq Ramay, Chaudhary Tallat Mehmood, Mian Muhammad Tayyab, Shahid Majeed, Shehzad Mushtaq Paracha, Naveed Gulzar, Ayub Aslam Manj, Ahmad Afzal Awan, Hajji Ata Ullah and Muhammad Abid also address the meeting in addition to Arif Ehsan of Sheikhupura Chamber, Danish Fakhri of Chiniot and Umar Rehman of Jhang Chamber.
Later, SVP Naveed Akram offered a vote of thanks while President Farooq Yousaf Sheikh presented FCCI Shield to Senator Aurangzeb.
Later, the federal minister also performed the soft launching of Faisalabad Expo by cutting a ribbon. He also recorded his remarks in the FCCI Visitor’s Book.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2026