ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has issued new rules establishing a faceless audit and assessment system for tax cases, according to a notification published Sept. 29, 2026.
The rules, issued through S.R.O. 1665(I)/2026, insert a new Chapter XX into the Income Tax Rules, 2002, creating a National Faceless Center to handle audits, assessments and related proceedings without face-to-face interaction between taxpayers and tax officials.
The chapter applies to proceedings under section 122E of the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001, for persons, classes of persons, income or cases specified by the board. It takes effect on dates the board will specify by notification, with different dates possible for different types of cases.
The center will be headed by a director general and include chief commissioners, commissioners, additional commissioners, deputy commissioners, assistant commissioners and other tax authorities, along with support staff. It will have four wings: audit, assessment, quality control and field operations.
Cases will be assigned through an allocation algorithm that separates audit, assessment and quality control functions among different officers or units. No officer may perform more than one of those functions in the same case for the same tax year. The identity of assigned officers will be recorded in FBR’s electronic system but not disclosed.
All notices, orders and communications from the center must be generated on the board’s computerized system, bear a digital identification number and be served under section 218. Taxpayers must submit replies, documents and evidence through their designated account on IRIS, the tax authority’s online system.
The audit wing will handle cases selected under section 177, proceedings arising from definite information under section 122 and certain proceedings under section 111. After completing an audit, the audit unit will issue a report and transfer the record to the assessment unit through automated allocation.
If physical verification is needed, an audit or assessment officer must record reasons and refer the request to the chief commissioner, who may direct the field operations wing or another officer to conduct it. The verifying officer must upload a report to the electronic record within a specified time.
A quality control wing will review audit reports, adjudication notices and assessment orders for quality assurance. Penalties and default surcharges will be issued through the center by the relevant audit or assessment officer.
The rules allow for both exclusive and concurrent jurisdiction. In concurrent cases, powers not assigned to the center remain with the commissioner having jurisdiction under section 209. The center’s chief commissioner may recommend transferring a case to a regular commissioner if it cannot be effectively handled facelessly because of the volume of physical records, the need for repeated physical verification, search and seizure requirements, or connections to pending proceedings.
The board may also transfer a case on its own motion. It has authority to issue instructions, standard operating procedures and formats for implementing the chapter, including incorporating procedures into IRIS.
The rules were previously published in draft form through S.R.O. 1651(I)/2026 on Sept. 25, 2026.
