Prime Minister Imran Khan paid Rs.9.8 million in taxes in the year 2019, while former prime minister and Pakistan People's Party (PPP) leader Senator Yousaf Raza Gilani paid no tax in the said year. This data was revealed by the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) that issued its 2019 tax directory for parliamentarians on Monday.
The directory, which has been published every year for the past six years, draws on tax returns filed both manually and electronically until January 3, 2020 and includes the tax filings of all parliamentarians.
"This data only includes income and tax declared in returns filed to FBR and does not include agricultural income tax paid to provinces, sales tax, federal excise duty etc," the document notes.
In the forward to the document, Finance Minister Shaukat Tarin said that the directory was published with the aim, "not only in educating taxpayers but also in encouraging compliance with tax laws as a national duty."
The minister added, "the directory embodies the government’s policy of better governance, accountability and transparency through public access to information."
The directory also shows that Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Shehbaz Sharif paid Rs8.2m and PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari paid Rs0.53m.
PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari paid Rs2.2m. Senior banker and incumbent finance minister, Shaukat Tarin paid Rs26.6m. Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi paid Rs0.9m and Planning and Development Minister Asad Umer paid Rs4.3m.
PPP Senator Yousaf Raza Gillani and Pakistan Muslim League-N's (PML-N) Azma Zahid Bokhari, paid the lowest in taxes of any parliamentarian, neither of whom paid anything in taxes. The highest tax amount was paid by PTI Member of the National Assembly (MNA) Muhammad Najeeb Haroon from Karachi, who paid Rs.140m in taxes.
The directory, which has been published every year for the past six years, draws on tax returns filed both manually and electronically until January 3, 2020 and includes the tax filings of all parliamentarians.
"This data only includes income and tax declared in returns filed to FBR and does not include agricultural income tax paid to provinces, sales tax, federal excise duty etc," the document notes.
In the forward to the document, Finance Minister Shaukat Tarin said that the directory was published with the aim, "not only in educating taxpayers but also in encouraging compliance with tax laws as a national duty."
The minister added, "the directory embodies the government’s policy of better governance, accountability and transparency through public access to information."
The directory also shows that Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Shehbaz Sharif paid Rs8.2m and PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari paid Rs0.53m.
PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari paid Rs2.2m. Senior banker and incumbent finance minister, Shaukat Tarin paid Rs26.6m. Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi paid Rs0.9m and Planning and Development Minister Asad Umer paid Rs4.3m.
PPP Senator Yousaf Raza Gillani and Pakistan Muslim League-N's (PML-N) Azma Zahid Bokhari, paid the lowest in taxes of any parliamentarian, neither of whom paid anything in taxes. The highest tax amount was paid by PTI Member of the National Assembly (MNA) Muhammad Najeeb Haroon from Karachi, who paid Rs.140m in taxes.