Telecom companies, acting on the advice of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), have deactivated more than 9,100 SIM cards belonging to individuals who have not filed their taxes.
According to FBR spokesperson Bakhtiar Ahmed Khan, telecom companies have been provided data on 30,000 non-filers, and a further 5,000 profiles will be shared daily for additional measures.
The FBR has identified over 550,000 individuals who have not filed their taxes. As a measure to encourage compliance, the FBR has imposed a 90% withholding tax on mobile top-ups for non-filers until they fulfill their tax obligations.
Initially, there was some resistance from the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) and cellular companies regarding the deactivation of SIM cards despite requests.
These actions are part of efforts to enforce tax compliance and ensure fair taxation practices in Pakistan, aimed at improving revenue collection and accountability in the telecom sector.
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