ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has told a visiting International Monetary Fund (IMF) review mission that the Gulf conflict and disruption in the Strait of Hormuz caused revenue losses and slowed economic activity during the first quarter of the current fiscal year.
Government officials also informed the IMF that around 10,000 federal civil servants will be required to digitally declare their movable and immovable assets by October 30, 2026, under a mandatory asset declaration regime.
The first round of discussions focused on revenue performance, the economic impact of the regional conflict and progress on structural reforms, including the digitisation of the Asset Declaration Scheme under Section 15-A of the Civil Servants Act, 1973.
The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) briefed the IMF mission on the impact of the Gulf conflict on tax collection and expressed confidence that Pakistan would meet its agreed first-quarter revenue target of Rs3.053 trillion by September 30.
According to officials, the FBR is expected to collect around Rs1.330 trillion in September against a monthly target of Rs1.343 trillion. The projected collection would allow the tax authority to meet its overall July-September target, despite the shortfall in the monthly target.
FBR officials attributed part of the revenue pressure to higher fuel prices and weaker economic activity following disruption in the Strait of Hormuz. The impact was particularly visible in sales tax and withholding tax collections at the import stage, officials said.
The FBR estimates that the external disruption resulted in revenue losses of around Rs144 billion during the first quarter, according to officials cited in the discussions.
Despite the reported impact, tax authorities told the IMF that they remained confident of achieving the quarterly target agreed under the programme.
Separately, the Establishment Division and tax authorities briefed the IMF mission on progress in digitising the Asset Declaration Scheme. Under the mandatory system, around 10,000 federal civil servants covered by the scheme will be required to submit details of their movable and immovable assets electronically.
Officials said the declaration would not be optional for employees covered by the scheme, with October 30, 2026 set as the target for completing the process.
The government expects the digitised asset declarations to be published by December 2026 or January 2027. The measure is linked to broader transparency and governance reforms under Pakistan’s IMF programme. An IMF programme document identifies publication of high-level federal civil servants’ asset declarations as a structural benchmark, with implementation listed as in progress and a deadline of end-October 2026.
The IMF review mission is continuing discussions with Pakistani authorities on fiscal and revenue performance, structural reforms and the economic effects of recent external developments.
The mission is also expected to assess progress on programme benchmarks and revenue mobilisation measures as part of the ongoing review.
