An initial estimate of Rs 1,500 billion is being given for subsidies, while Rs 9,700 billion is being estimated for interest and loan expenses.
The projection for tax income, according to sources, is more than Rs 11,000 billion, of which Rs 5,300 billion is projected to come from direct taxes and Rs 680 billion from federal excise duties.
Sources predicted that customs duties will bring in over Rs 1,100 billion and sales tax would likely bring in over Rs 3,850 billion.
A fuel charge of Rs 1,100 billion is anticipated to yield the first estimate of non-tax revenue of Rs 2,100 billion. Additionally, reports stated that the estimated government budget deficit is Rs 9,300 billion.
The Pakistani government is expected to remove tax exemptions in the FY2024–25 budget, according to earlier reports, per an IMF demand.
Additionally, tractors and insecticides may see price increases as a result of the government’s proposed sales tax. These are necessary agricultural supplies.
Right now, pesticides and the active substances listed on a registration form filed with the Department of Plant Protection are free from sales tax under the Sixth Schedule of the Sales Tax Act.
Additionally, tractors are exempt from sales tax, including road tractors used to tow semi-trailers. On the other hand, for the next fiscal year, budget managers are talking about eliminating these exemptions and lowering the sales tax rate on pesticides and tractors.
The cost of pesticides and agricultural equipment could rise as a result, which would put a heavy burden on farmers and those who depend on these products.
It is anticipated that the 2019 budget will impose withhold tax on commercial importers, resulting in an additional tax revenue of Rs30 billion.
In order to revive Pakistan’s energy industry, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) called on Islamabad to implement “strong cost-side reforms.”
