Banks to Share Account Data with FBR Under FY27 Finance Bill
The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has introduced a provision in the Finance Bill for the fiscal year 2026-27 requiring all banks and Electronic Money Institutions (EMIs) in Pakistan to upload specified account holder data to a Central Data Hub maintained by the FBR. This measure is aimed at enhancing the detection of tax evasion through algorithmic cross-matching of tax and banking information.
Under Section 165AB of the Finance Bill FY2026-27, every banking company and EMI must report details of account holders whose total deposits or withdrawals exceed Rs100 million during any six-month reporting period. These details include total deposits and withdrawals, opening and closing balances, peak credit balances, and total credits across all accounts held by the individual or entity during the relevant period.
Despite existing confidentiality protections under the Banking Companies Ordinance 1962, the State Bank of Pakistan Act 1956, and the Protection of Economic Reforms Act 1992, the new provision overrides these laws, making data sharing mandatory for banks and EMIs.
The data will be uploaded twice each financial year, corresponding to the periods from July 1 to December 31 and January 1 to June 30. Banks are required to submit the data by January 31 for the first half and by July 31 for the second half of the financial year.
The Central Data Hub, maintained by FBR through Pakistan Revenue Automation Limited (PRAL), will process the uploaded information digitally without making it directly visible to Income Tax Authorities during cross-matching. Any significant inconsistencies detected by the algorithm will be automatically flagged and forwarded to the FBR’s Compliance Risk Management system for further investigation by the National Faceless Centre.
The Finance Bill also authorises the State Bank of Pakistan to establish and operate a secure centralised virtual repository of banking data, utilising unique identifiers as prescribed by the FBR Board, to support this data-sharing mechanism.
To assure data privacy, the bill explicitly mandates the FBR to ensure that all shared banking information remains strictly confidential and is protected against any form of disclosure or misuse.
This initiative represents a significant move by Pakistani tax authorities to leverage technology and data analytics in improving tax compliance and curbing illicit financial activities.
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