Pakistan's income tax return is filed annually on the IRIS portal (iris.fbr.gov.pk) before September 30 — salaried employees file Form A; business owners and self-employed filers file Form B; the return declares all income and calculates final tax liability.

Filing Your Return in Under an Hour — For Most Salaried Employees

The overwhelming majority of Pakistani salaried employees qualify for Form A — the simplest IRIS return. If your employer has filed their monthly withholding statements correctly (which most large employers do), IRIS auto-populates your salary, tax deducted, and employer details. For many people, the September 30 return is essentially reviewing pre-filled data, entering any other income, and clicking Submit. The intimidation factor is far greater than the actual complexity for a standard salaried return.

Step 1

Log In to IRIS at the Correct URL

Go to iris.fbr.gov.pk and log in with your CNIC as username and your IRIS password. If this is your first login, use the temporary password sent to your registered email and change it immediately. Always verify you're on the genuine iris.fbr.gov.pk URL — phishing sites that mimic IRIS are a known scam targeting Pakistani taxpayers.

Step 2

Select the Correct Return Form

Navigate to Declaration then Income Tax Return and select the relevant tax year. Choose: Form A for salaried individuals whose primary income is from employment; Form B for business income, sole proprietors, and freelancers; or the AOP form for partnerships. The system auto-populates data already in IRIS records — verify every pre-filled field carefully before moving forward.

Step 3

Enter All Income Sources and Deductions

Declare all income for the tax year: salary income with the tax deducted at source amount from your employer certificate; business income as revenue minus allowable expenses; rental income received; capital gains from asset sales; and bank profit or dividends received. Claim allowable deductions: Zakat paid to approved organisations; charitable donations to approved NPOs; education expenses; and health insurance premiums — these directly reduce your taxable income.

Step 4

Submit and Pay Any Balance Tax

After entering all income and deductions, IRIS calculates your total tax liability and offsets the tax already paid through employer deductions or advance tax payments. If additional tax is due, pay via IRIS online payment or generate a bank payment slip. Click Submit — IRIS generates a unique acknowledgement number confirming successful filing. Download and save this acknowledgement. Filing deadline: September 30 annually for individuals.

FBR and Filing Problems

IRIS not accepting my employer's tax deduction certificate amount

Employer withholding flows into IRIS through the employer's monthly filings. If your deducted amount doesn't appear in the Auto-Populated section, your employer may not have filed their monthly withholding statements on time. Follow up with your HR or accounts department.

IRIS keeps logging me out during form completion

Save your progress regularly using the Save Draft option. IRIS sessions time out after inactivity. Avoid working on the return across multiple browser tabs simultaneously.

Frequently Asked Questions

September 30 of the year following the tax year end (June 30). Tax Year 2026 (July 2025 to June 2026) must be filed by September 30, 2026.

Simple salaried returns can be self-filed on IRIS in 30-60 minutes with your employer's salary certificate. Complex returns with multiple income sources, business income, or capital gains benefit from a registered tax practitioner.

Yes — you'll file Form B (business/self-employed) rather than Form A. Your employer salary income still appears on the return, but you add freelancing income under business income. You can deduct legitimate business expenses (internet, software, home office proportion). Consider engaging a registered tax practitioner for the first year of a combined salaried + freelance return — the IT export incentive provisions are worth getting right.

File your return on IRIS. If your actual tax liability (calculated from your true income and deductions) is less than what your employer deducted, IRIS shows a refundable amount. Claim it in the return submission by providing your bank IBAN. FBR processes refunds in 3–6 months for straightforward cases. This is one of the most overlooked benefits of filing — many Pakistanis overpay via employer deductions and never recover the excess.

September 30 is the deadline. No grace period exists — penalties begin from October 1. The penalty is Rs. 1,000 per month of delay (or 0.1% of tax payable, whichever is higher). More expensive practically: you're excluded from the ATL during the delay period, meaning every bank transaction, property deal, and vehicle registration costs you the higher non-filer withholding rate. File late rather than never — the late-filing penalties stop the moment you submit.