ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s tax authority will brief Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday on the implementation of a faceless tax system, artificial intelligence tools for analyzing returns, and digital measures aimed at closing a tax gap of over 1 trillion rupees ($3.6 billion) across 18 sectors, officials said.
The Federal Board of Revenue kept its headquarters open Sunday to finalize the presentation, sources told Business Recorder. The briefing will cover the status of the faceless system on the Inland Revenue side, the use of AI for returns analysis, the digital ecosystem, and comprehensive proposals for human resource reforms and restructuring of the tax machinery.
The integrity issues of FBR’s field formations are also under the prime minister’s scrutiny, according to the sources.
Authorities plan to complete sales production monitoring in major industries by the end of December as part of efforts to narrow the gap between actual and potential tax collection. The tax gap in the 18 sectors is approximately 1 trillion rupees.
Digital monitoring systems have been fully installed in the sugar, cement, tobacco, tiles and fertilizer sectors, while installation is underway in the textile, packaged water, packaged juice and packaged milk sectors.
Equipment purchases for the steel, poultry and tire sectors were completed by Oct. 15, and purchases for tea, household electronics, leather, paper and board, and oil and ghee are to be completed by Oct. 30.
The Prime Minister’s Office has directed the FBR to present comprehensive proposals on HR reforms and organizational restructuring. The restructured agency is expected to strengthen tax administration, enhance transparency and improve economic decision-making.
Sharif will chair the high-level review meeting on the reforms. Tax authorities will also update the prime minister on the digital ecosystem, which focuses on building an integrated system connecting the entire economic value chain — from production and import of raw materials to manufacturing and consumer purchases. Data generated through the new system will be used for strategic economic decision-making, officials said.
