FBR Urged to Extend Tax Return Deadline as IRIS Glitches Continue

Pressure is growing on the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to give taxpayers more time to file their income tax returns. With the September 30 deadline only one day away, tax lawyers, accountants and Pakistan's biggest business body say the IRIS online portal keeps slowing down and failing. Many people who want to file, they say, simply cannot finish on time.

As of Tuesday, September 29, FBR has not announced any extension. Its official schedule still shows September 30, 2026 as the last date for individuals and associations of persons (AOPs) to file their returns for Tax Year 2026. This tax year covers income earned from July 1, 2025 to June 30, 2026.

Who is asking for more time

Almost every major tax body in the country has now written to FBR. The Pakistan Tax Bar Association (PTBA) wants the deadline moved to December 3, 2026. The Pakistan Tax Advisers Association has asked for time until November 30. The Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) has asked for one extra month, until October 31.

Tax bar associations in Lahore, Rawalpindi, Gujrat and Multan have also asked FBR Chairman Rashid Mahmood Langrial for at least one more month, according to Business Recorder.

FPCCI President Atif Ikram Sheikh said the portal has become slow and unstable because of heavy traffic from across the country. He said recent changes in tax law have confused many people, and they need time to understand them so they do not make mistakes in their wealth statements. He also said high inflation and rising costs have put small businesses under pressure, and many are still finishing their accounts.

Why taxpayers say they are short of time

The Income Tax Ordinance normally gives taxpayers about 90 days to file a return. This year, the Tax Year 2026 return form only appeared on IRIS on July 27. That left roughly 65 days before the deadline.

The final form came even later. FBR officially notified it on September 2 through S.R.O. 1495(I)/2026, and it included four new sections. In a letter dated September 26, the PTBA said the rules require FBR to put a draft of the form online by January 7 for public comments and to notify the final form by January 31. It said the official notice should have come by July 1 at the latest.

Because the final form was notified on September 2, the PTBA argues that taxpayers are entitled to a full 92 days from that date. By its count, that period ends on December 3, which is why it asked for that date.

The new wealth statement is another big reason for delay. Taxpayers must now update details of their houses, plots and other property, and give the IBAN of each bank account. Tax lawyers say collecting and checking this information takes a lot of time, especially for people with several properties or accounts.

Problems on the IRIS portal

Complaints about IRIS have been coming in for weeks. In mid September, after the Lahore Tax Bar Association reported that the system was not working properly, FBR admitted on social media that taxpayers were facing on and off problems on the portal and said its technical team was fixing them.

The trouble got worse over the weekend. On Sunday, September 27, the system failed to accept returns for many users, according to tax lawyers. Some people received messages that their account was temporarily locked. Tax lawyer Waheed Shahzad Butt said the system had also started asking for a new reason for capital gains tax exemptions on that day, and he warned that the matter could be taken to the Federal Tax Ombudsman.

Tax expert Amer Sharif said taxpayers have faced slowdowns, bugs and other errors while submitting returns, and that IRIS has failed again and again to accept returns properly in recent weeks.

The numbers show the size of the problem. Asif S Kasbati, a senior member of the fiscal laws committee of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Pakistan, told Business Recorder that around 3 million returns had been filed so far. Based on past years, he said, 8 million or more returns are expected from people other than traders. He suggested FBR announce at least one month of extra time on the morning of September 30, so that millions of people do not have to apply for extensions one by one.

What it means for ordinary taxpayers

The deadline matters because it decides who stays on FBR's Active Taxpayers List (ATL). People on this list pay lower withholding tax on things like bank transactions, buying property and registering vehicles. Earlier this month, FBR itself urged people to file by September 30 so they could keep these benefits. Those who file late can face penalties, and they have to pay an extra surcharge to get back on the list.

FBR has pushed the deadline into October in both 2024 and 2025, mostly because of similar portal problems and requests from business groups. But in those years the decision came very close to the last date, and there is no guarantee it will happen again.

For now, experts say the safest step is to file as soon as possible and not wait for an extension. People who have a real reason for delay, such as illness or being abroad, can also apply to their tax Commissioner for extra time under Section 119 of the Income Tax Ordinance. This application must be made before the deadline ends, not after.

Amer Sharif said a quick decision from FBR would help everyone, because accountants and taxpayers could then plan their work instead of waiting for a last minute announcement. If FBR agrees to an extension, it will announce the new date through an official notification. Until then, September 30 remains the legal deadline.