Islamabad Capital Territory

Islamabad | ReNews Pakistan
Pakistan’s salaried class paid around Rs 144 billion in income tax during the first quarter of fiscal year 2026-27, significantly exceeding the combined tax contribution of retailers and the real estate sector, according to provisional data from the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR).
During the July-September quarter, combined income tax payments from the retail and real estate sectors stood at approximately Rs 54 billion, around Rs 90 billion lower than the amount collected from salaried individuals.
The figures highlight a widening gap in tax contributions among major segments of the economy, with salaried taxpayers continuing to provide a substantially larger share of income tax revenue despite measures announced by the government to broaden the tax base.
FBR data showed that income tax collections from the real estate sector declined by 38% year-on-year to Rs 35.2 billion during the first three months of the current fiscal year. The decline followed the government’s decision to substantially reduce advance tax rates applicable to property sales and purchases.
Tax collected on property sales fell by 42% to Rs 23 billion, compared with Rs 39.5 billion during the corresponding period of the previous year. Similarly, tax collection from property purchases declined by 31% to Rs 12.2 billion from Rs 17.7 billion a year earlier.
Under the revised taxation regime, the advance tax rate on property purchases was reduced from 2.5% to 1.25%. For property sales, the previous tax structure involving three slabs was replaced with a single rate of 2.75%, compared with the earlier rate of up to 5.5%.
The reductions were introduced as part of the government’s fiscal measures and were endorsed under Pakistan’s programme with the International Monetary Fund. The latest revenue figures indicate that the lower advance tax rates have had a significant impact on collections from property transactions.
The real estate sector had contributed around Rs 200 billion in income tax during fiscal year 2023-24, while its contribution increased to Rs 236 billion in fiscal year 2025-26 before the latest reductions in property transaction taxes took effect.
Tax receipts from wholesalers and retailers, meanwhile, showed limited growth during the first quarter. Withholding tax collections from the two segments totalled Rs 18.4 billion, increasing by only Rs 244 million, or approximately 1.3%, from the same period last year.
Wholesalers contributed Rs 6.2 billion, representing a 10% year-on-year decline, while retailers paid around Rs 11.3 billion, an increase of 8.3%.
The relatively modest increase came despite government efforts to bring more retailers into the tax net, including the introduction of a fixed taxation mechanism aimed at increasing revenue from the country’s large wholesale and retail economy.
In contrast, income tax collected from salaried individuals increased by Rs 13.4 billion, or 10.2%, during the July-September quarter compared with the corresponding period last year.
The annual tax contribution of salaried workers has also risen sharply in recent years. According to official figures, collections from salaried taxpayers increased from around Rs 391 billion before Pakistan entered its current IMF programme to Rs 629 billion by the end of June 2026.
The government has maintained that the latest federal budget provided approximately Rs 52 billion in relief to salaried taxpayers through reductions in income tax rates of up to three percentage points, abolition of the 9% surcharge and an increase in the annual income threshold for application of the maximum 35% tax rate from Rs 4.1 million to Rs 7 million.
Despite these measures, salaried households continue to face pressure from higher energy and living costs. The government is currently passing movements in international oil prices on to consumers while imposing a petroleum levy of Rs 80 per litre and a climate support levy of Rs 5 per litre.
Higher fuel costs can also feed into transportation and production expenses, adding pressure to the prices of food and other essential goods.
The latest tax figures come against the backdrop of repeated government commitments to expand Pakistan’s tax base and reduce disproportionate reliance on documented taxpayers. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has previously pledged to ease the burden on salaried workers as more sectors are brought effectively into the tax system.
However, the first-quarter figures indicate that tax revenue from salaried individuals continues to rise, while collections linked to property transactions have fallen substantially and revenue growth from the wholesale and retail sectors remains limited.

Islamabad | ReNews Pakistan
The Islamabad High Court has declared unlawful a blanket administrative restriction on the sale, purchase, registration and mutation of property in parts of Islamabad’s Zone III, directing the relevant authorities to process lawful property transactions in accordance with applicable law and prescribed procedures.

The judgment covers Shah Allah Ditta, Sangjani, Sara e Kharbooza and other similarly situated localities in Zone III, where property transactions had been halted through administrative directions.

Justice Muhammad Asif issued the ruling while allowing a petition filed by resident Fazal Abbas. The court held that the blanket restriction, based on a Capital Development Authority letter and verbal directions from the deputy commissioner, had been imposed without a statutory notification or clear legal authority.

The restriction had originally been introduced as part of efforts to curb illegal housing schemes, unauthorized construction and prohibited changes in land use. However, the court found that the broad administrative ban had also affected ordinary landowners whose individual properties and transactions had no connection with illegal housing activity.

The court observed that authorities should proceed against actual violators rather than impose indiscriminate restrictions on every property owner in an affected locality. It ruled that lawful owners could not be denied registration or mutation simply because their property was situated in an area where unrelated illegal activity might also be taking place.

The IHC directed the authorities to regulate property transactions in accordance with the Capital Development Authority Ordinance 1960, the Islamabad Capital Territory Zoning Regulations 1992 and other applicable laws.

At the same time, the court made clear that the ruling does not legalize illegal housing schemes, unauthorized subdivisions, prohibited land-use changes or unlawful construction in Zone III. The CDA and district administration retain their powers to take action against such violations where a lawful basis exists.

The practical effect of the judgment is that legitimate private landowners can no longer be denied registration or mutation solely because their property falls within a wider locality subject to planning and enforcement concerns.

The ruling is particularly significant for Shah Allah Ditta and other areas around the Margalla foothills, where ancestral private land, agricultural holdings and residential properties coexist with strict planning, zoning and environmental restrictions.

Following the judgment, the office of the deputy commissioner and commissioner revenue Islamabad also moved to withdraw the restrictions and directed relevant revenue officials to make administrative arrangements for implementation of the court’s order.

Prospective buyers and investors, however, will still need to verify title, zoning status, permitted land use and other relevant approvals before entering into a transaction. Removal of the blanket transfer restriction does not provide automatic legal status to unauthorized housing schemes or constructions.

Islamabad | ReNews Pakistan
The Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) has proposed increasing the housing finance limit for non bank microfinance companies to Rs 5 million as part of regulatory changes aimed at expanding access to smaller scale housing and construction finance.

The proposed framework also includes adjustments to certain borrower thresholds, with the objective of widening access to housing related financing through non bank microfinance institutions regulated by the SECP.

The proposed changes are specifically intended for SECP regulated non bank microfinance entities and would not alter existing mortgage or housing finance products offered by conventional commercial banks.

If finalised and implemented, the higher limit could provide additional financing options for borrowers seeking relatively smaller loans for home construction, expansion and other housing needs.

The proposal comes amid higher construction costs, which have reduced the practical value of earlier financing limits and increased the amount households may require to undertake even small scale residential construction projects.

For the real estate and construction sectors, greater access to smaller housing loans could help support construction activity, strengthen demand from genuine end users and facilitate more formal transactions in the lower value segment of the property market.

The actual impact of the measure, however, will depend on the final regulatory notification, the lending appetite and capacity of microfinance institutions, financing terms and the specific housing finance products developed following implementation.

The proposed increase represents a regulatory move towards improving formal financing options for affordable and incremental housing in Pakistan, particularly for borrowers whose financing requirements fall below the typical scale of conventional mortgage products.