FBR Extends Income Tax Return Filing Deadline to October 31

The Federal Board of Revenue has extended the deadline for filing income tax returns for Tax Year 2026 by 16 days. The decision follows requests from trade bodies and tax bar associations, which cited delays in tax forms and technical problems with the online filing system

The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has extended the deadline for filing income tax returns for Tax Year 2026 to October 31. The revised date applies to taxpayers whose original September 30 deadline had already been extended to October 15.

The FBR issued the extension under Section 214A of the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001, following requests from trade bodies and tax bar associations. The board had previously extended the deadline from September 30 to October 15.

Tax Bodies Cite Filing Problems

Trade representatives and tax professionals sought more time because of delays in issuing return forms, heavy online traffic and technical problems with the IRIS tax filing portal.

Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry President Atif Ikram Sheikh had urged the government to extend the deadline to October 31. The Karachi Tax Bar Association also raised concerns about delayed draft notifications and persistent technical issues affecting online submissions.

Tax Returns Rise 34% Year-on-Year

Official figures reported for October 14 showed that taxpayers had filed 6.71 million returns, compared with 4.99 million during the same period last year. This represented an increase of 34.38%.

The total tax paid with returns reached Rs66.81 billion, up 14.61% from Rs58.29 billion a year earlier.

Returns from non-salaried individuals, including traders, shopkeepers, professionals and self-employed people, increased by 46.35% to 4.45 million from 3.04 million.

Salaried individuals filed 2.18 million returns, compared with 1.88 million last year, marking a rise of 16.16%.

Taxpayers covered by the extension now have until October 31 to submit their returns.