Aurangzeb | Pakistan

Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb on Monday said that the additional powers granted to the Federal Bureau of Revenue (FBR) had nothing to do with income tax. The expanded enforcement powers for the FBR include the authority to block high-value financial transactions by non-filers — such as vehicle and property purchases, investment in securities and mutual funds, and opening certain prestigious bank accounts — along with powers to seal unregistered business premises, confiscate goods and recover taxes from firms, including those in the public sector. The move has generated criticism from many quarters. Addressing the matter in a press conference in Karachi today, Aurangzeb said, “I think there is something to understand about what the existing law was at the time. The first thing to understand is that it has no relation to income tax. This whole issue is a sales tax fraud issue.” The finance minister added that in the original law, Inland Revenue Service officers had the authority to arrest, and it was the ...

Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb on Wednesday reaffirmed the government’s commitment to maintaining a consultative policy framework as the Pakistan Business Council (PBC) transitioned its leadership. Aurangzeb met with a delegation of the PBC led by outgoing Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Ehsan Malik and incoming CEO Javed Kureishi at the Finance Division, the division said in a press release. The minister welcomed the PBC’s transition in leadership and extended his full support to the incoming team, reaffirming the government’s commitment to maintaining an inclusive and ongoing consultative process with key stakeholders in the business community. During the meeting, Aurangzeb appreciated the constructive role played by the PBC, particularly acknowledging the value of its policy input, research, and the extensive sectoral data regularly shared with the government. He underscored the importance of evidence-based policymaking and informed the delegation that the Tax Policy Office had been relocated from the F...

Federal Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb departed from Islamabad on Monday for Seville, Spain to participate in the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FFD4) being held from July 1 to 3, 2025, according to a statement issued by his ministry . The global conference will bring together leaders, policymakers, and international development experts to explore innovative and sustainable financing strategies to accelerate progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly for developing and emerging economies. During the visit, Aurangzeb will represent Pakistan in the main conference sessions and a range of high-level side events. On July 1, he will co-chair the multi-stakeholder roundtable on “Leveraging Private Business and Finance”, and deliver a keynote address at the International Business Forum (IBF) Policy Dialogue on “Accelerating EMDEs (Emerging Market and Developing Economies) Investment: The Role of Credit Ratings”. He is also scheduled to address the gene...

• Income tax for Rs50,000-Rs100,000 monthly salaries cut to 1pc • Solar panel import tax slashed from 18pc to 10pc • Opposition criticises lack of transparency on Senate finance committee report • Shibli Faraz says economy running unsustainably on loans ISLAMABAD: Under fire from parliamentarians and business leaders over a clause allowing tax officers to detain suspected evaders, Finance Minister Muha­mmad Aurangzeb told the Senate on Saturday that more safeguards have been added to the law to prevent misuse of authority. Speaking during the Senate debate on the Finance Bill 2025, Mr Aurangzeb said that detailed consultations were held with Senators Saleem Mand­viwalla and Farooq H. Naek, resulting in clearer and more balanced provisions, which will be shared during his upcoming speech in the National Assembly. The rollback follows strong push-back from business lobbies and both parliamentary committees, which argued that the original clause — allowing officers to detain suspects without external approval — ...

Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb on Tuesday said that Pakistan and the US will continue to strengthen their economic partnership as both sides agreed to advance negotiations on reciprocal tariffs through constructive engagement, state-run Radio Pakistan reported. Pakistan faces a potential 29 per cent tariff on its exports to the US due to a $3 billion trade surplus with the world’s biggest economy, under tariffs announced by Washington in April on countries around the world. While speaking at an event in Islamabad today, Aurangzeb said he had a constructive and positive conversation with the US Commerce Secretary, Howard Lutnick, last night. He said that both countries are moving in the right direction. “The government will stay the course of reforms in taxation, energy and other sectors,” he said. “We have also carried out tariff reforms to move towards competitive economy.” Aurangzeb continued that both sides agreed to advance negotiations on reciprocal tariffs through constructive engagement, aiming to...

Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb on Wednesday said lower government expenditures in the outgoing fiscal year were a “response” to previous “right pushback” from tax-paying individuals. He made the remarks during a post-budget press conference where he expanded upon the federal budget proposed yesterday for the upcoming FY25-26. Maintaining an aggressive stance on fiscal consolidation, as required by the Int­ernational Monetary Fund (IMF), Aurangzeb yesterday still managed to offer some notional relief to the salaried class in the federal budget for FY2025-26, along with incentives for the real estate and construction sectors to revive the struggling industrial sector and stimulate economic growth. Highlights: Finance minister links no hike in minimum wage with slower inflation Aurangzeb defends salary hike ‘after 9 years’ for NA speaker, Senate chairman FBR chief notes levy on solar panels due to ‘disadvantaged’ local assemblers FBR member explains rationale behind taxing high-value goods at different rate...

Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb on Sunday hailed the results of the Ipsos Consumer Confidence Survey for the second quarter of 2025, saying the findings reflected the government’s successful microeconomic strategy over the last 14 months. The survey was conducted by Ipsos, a global market research firm that gathers insights on consumer behaviour, public opinion, and market trends. The firm uses methods like online polls, interviews, and focus groups across 89 countries. A press release by the Ministry of Finance said today that Aurangzeb welcomed the survey findings, calling them a strong affirmation of the improving economic outlook and public sentiment across Pakistan. “The survey reveals a significant surge in consumer confidence, with 42 per cent of Pakistanis now believing the country is heading in the right direction — the highest level recorded in six years,” the release said. Perceptions of the economy being strong also reached their most favourable levels since August 2019. Notably, optimism had ...