July-May collection falls short by Rs1tr

The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) missed its revenue collection target by nearly Rs1.008 trillion in the first 11 months of FY25 due to slowing economic growth and a drop in imports, which impacted domestic sales tax collection. The FBR collected Rs10.233tr between July and May against the budgetary target of Rs11.241tr. However, the collection is 26 per cent higher than the Rs8.11tr collected a year ago. On a monthly basis, the FBR collected Rs932 billion in May against the target of Rs1.11tr projected for the same month, indicating a shortfall of Rs178bn. However, the collection is 22pc higher than Rs762bn collected a year ago, according to provisional data released on Saturday. The shortfall highlights poor tax compliance, particularly concerning sales tax collection at the domestic stage, even after the removal of substantial exemptions on products such as stationery and infant formula. However, the sales tax collection continues to fall short of the anticipated target, indicating potential gaps in the collection process.