Individuals who manually file their income tax returns will now be eligible for the same tax benefits as those who file electronically.Manual income tax filers will receive reduced rates of withholding taxes, aligning with electronic filers.
The Federal Tax Ombudsman (FTO) has directed the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to implement measures and establish Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) to ensure that all manual income tax filers for the latest tax year are considered active based on FBR's Active Taxpayer List (ATL).
A prominent tax lawyer, Waheed Shahzad Butt, brought this issue to the FTO's attention through a public interest complaint. Following an investigation and discussions with FBR officials, the matter was resolved without resorting to litigation, saving taxpayer money.
Waheed Shahzad Butt expressed concern that despite the FBR's responsibility to ensure fair taxation, manual tax filers have faced unjust discrimination compared to electronic filers. This lack of consideration for this vulnerable taxpayer group has faced criticism from various quarters.
Waheed also highlighted the FBR's direct violation of Rule 73 of Income Tax Rules 2002, which resulted in some taxpayers being unjustly excluded from the ATL database, despite filing their income tax returns on time for Tax Year 2022.