IHC suspends orders on disclosure of taxpayers’ data

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) Tuesday suspended the Pakistan Information Commission’s orders relating to the disclosure of taxpayers’ data.

Justice Khadim Hussain Soomro took up the case here today.

The commission had issued the contested orders on 8 January 2026 and 3 December 2025.

The FBR had challenged the Pakistan Information Commission’s orders directing it to provide taxpayers’ data. Senior advocate Hafiz Ehsan Khokhar appeared before the court on behalf of the FBR.

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) put on hold the Pakistan Information Commission’s directives dated 8 January 2026 and 3 December 2025, which had required the sharing of tax-related information. Notices were issued to all parties, seeking their responses.

Justice Khadim Hussain Soomro passed the restraining order on a petition filed by the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), staying the implementation of the PIC’s decisions.

During the hearing, the court observed that financial confidentiality takes precedence over the right to information. It further ruled that even under the Right of Information Act, tax records cannot be made public.

In a separate development, the chairman Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) Pakistan claimed that Rs. 70 billion has been recovered on the account of ‘Super Tax’.

Talking to the media correspondents during an informal interaction in Islamabad, the chairman of FBR, Rashid Mahmood Langrial, stated that the amount collected during January had already been added to the revenue collection.

He added that the FBR had set a revenue target of Rs.1,028 billion for the current month and expressed confidence that the goal would be achieved.

The FBR chairman stressed that total collections under the super tax are expected to reach Rs.217 billion.