Filing a return
Getting a Tax Refund from FBR
Apply within three years of the later of the assessment order or the date you paid. The Commissioner must pass an order within sixty days, and if he does not, section 170(5) gives you an express right of appeal against the silence. Where a refund goes unpaid for three months after becoming due, section 171 requires FBR to pay you compensation at KIBOR plus 0.5%.
We do this for clients:Income Tax Return Filing in Pakistan
Where these figures come from
- Statutory basis
- Income Tax Ordinance, 2001, as amended by the Finance Act 2026, for tax year 2027 (1 July 2026 to 30 June 2027).
- Last checked against the statute
- by BarrioVibe, which files income tax returns through FBR IRIS.
These figures are an estimate computed from the rates above, not tax advice for your situation. Your return depends on facts a form cannot see, so treat the number as a starting point and speak to us before you file on it.
How the claim actually works
Section 170. The order of operations matters, particularly the third step.
- 1
Apply within three years
Section 170(2)(c): within three years of the LATER of the date the Commissioner issued the assessment order for the relevant tax year, or the date the tax was paid. Taking the later of the two is more generous than it first reads.
- 2
Use the prescribed form, verified
Section 170(2)(a) and (b). An application that is not in the prescribed form and properly verified is not an application.
- 3
FBR sets off before it pays
Section 170(3) requires the excess to be applied first against other tax due under the Ordinance, then against your outstanding liability for other taxes, and only the remainder is refunded to you.
- 4
Sixty days for a decision
Section 170(4): the Commissioner shall pass an order within sixty days of receiving the application.
Why some refunds arrive without asking
Section 170A, which operates notwithstanding section 170, lets the Board process and issue a refund to a taxpayer who has filed a return WITHOUT requiring a refund application, to the extent of tax credit verified by the Board's own computerised system.
That explains the pattern people find inconsistent. Where the credit is something the system can verify by itself, typically withholding that the deductor has properly reported, it can be refunded automatically. Where the claim rests on evidence the system does not hold, the section 170 application is still the route. Section 170(6) separately empowers the Board to make rules for expeditious processing and automatic payment through a centralised system from a date it notifies.
The most common reason a refund exists at all
Over-withholding. Tax deducted at source under the withholding provisions is credited against your liability for the year, and where the deductions exceed the tax the return computes, the excess is a refund rather than a windfall to the state.
That is why the return matters even for someone with no tax to pay. A person whose bank, employer or clients have withheld more than the slabs produce has no route to that money except through filing, and the three-year clock in section 170(2)(c) is running from the later of assessment or payment whether or not they file.
Questions
The questionspeople ask
How long do I have to claim a tax refund in Pakistan?
Three years under section 170(2)(c), running from the LATER of the date the Commissioner issued the assessment order for the tax year concerned, or the date the tax was paid.
How long does FBR have to decide a refund application?
Sixty days from receipt, under section 170(4). If no order is passed within that time, section 170(5)(b) gives you an express right of appeal against the failure to decide.
Does FBR pay interest on a late refund?
Yes. Section 171 requires compensation at KIBOR plus 0.5 per cent a year where a refund is not paid within three months of becoming due, computed from the end of that three month period until payment. A proviso suspends it where there is reason to believe the claim is not admissible.
What can I do if FBR never responds to my refund application?
Appeal the silence. Section 170(5)(b) allows an appeal by a person aggrieved by the failure of the Commissioner to pass an order within the sixty days, so you do not have to wait for a decision to challenge the absence of one.
My refund was approved but I received nothing. Why?
Probably section 170(3). The Commissioner must apply the excess first against other tax due under the Ordinance, then against outstanding liability for other taxes, and refund only the remainder. Arrears elsewhere absorb it before it reaches you.
Do I need to apply, or does FBR refund automatically?
Both exist. Section 170A lets the Board issue a refund without an application to the extent of tax credit its own system can verify, typically properly reported withholding. Anything resting on evidence the system does not hold still needs the section 170 application.
Can I appeal a refund refusal?
Yes. Section 170 orders are listed in section 127(1) as appealable, so a refusal goes to the Commissioner (Appeals) within thirty days of service.
Why would I be owed a refund if I never paid tax directly?
Because of withholding. Tax deducted at source by your bank, employer or clients is credited against your liability, and where those deductions exceed what the slabs produce the difference is refundable. Filing is the only route to it.
Also here
Relatedguides
Rather have someone handle it?
We file returns through IRIS every day. If the answer above raises a question about your own case, that is the conversation to have before the deadline rather than after it.