Business Desk 
Jun 26, 2025
In a bid to align tax enforcement with business facilitation, the federal government of Pakistan has revised tax penalties for online payment intermediaries, e-commerce platforms, and courier companies under the amended Finance Bill 2025-26.
The revision of penalties has reportedly been carried out on the recommendations from the National Assembly and Senate Standing Committees on Finance.
Breakdown of tax penalties for online platforms in Pakistan
The amendments to the Finance Bill 2025-26 dropped penalties for specific non-compliance actions by online marketplaces, payment intermediaries, and courier companies. However, strict penalties have been kept intact for confirmed tax fraud.
Penalties for non-filing of monthly sales tax statements in Pakistan
For failure to file the prescribed monthly sales tax statement for two consecutive months, a penalty of Rs300,000 will be imposed for the first default. If the statement is not filed in any subsequent month within the same year, the penalty escalates to Rs1,000,000 per default. This applies to:
- Online marketplaces (eg, e-commerce platforms)
- Payment intermediaries (eg, mobile wallets, fintech firms)
- Courier companies collecting payments on behalf of sellers
Penalties for allowing unregistered sellers
Platforms that permit unregistered individuals to use their services for e-commerce activities will face penalties. For the first offence of allowing an unregistered seller, the penalty is Rs300,000. Each subsequent violation within a year incurs a penalty of Rs1,000,000.
Penalties on tax fraud in Pakistan
The Finance Bill has categorised offences into two groups to retain stringent penalties for tax fraud, with category A including severe tax fraud, which is punishable by up to 10 years in jail and fines of up to Rs10 million.
Category B, on the other hand, involves lesser tax fraud and enforces penalties of up to 5 years in jail and fines of up to Rs5m.
