IMF may object to cap relaxation for transactions by ‘ineligible persons’ in revised finance bill

ISLAMABAD: The IMF may raise objections to the revised Finance Bill 2025-26 which proposes relaxations for increasing thresholds to ban “ineligible persons” from buying property and vehicles.

The revised Finance Bill has undergone changes during the parliamentary process, marking a first-time occurrence in the country’s history, as the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Finance finalized the changes.

These changes, especially related to enforcement measures to generate Rs389 billion, might witness serious questions from the IMF because the revised Finance Bill has softened stringent clauses. The government will have to justify reasons for it and showing its commitment to generating the desired revenues without facing major shortfall in achieving the target of Rs14.131 trillion.

Originally, the Finance Bill comprised 355 pages on the eve of budget announcement. The revised bill shrank to 348 pages, which will be laid down before the NA in the next 48 hours.

The revised Finance Bill 2025-26 introduces a threshold of Rs7 million for vehicle purchases. If the invoice value for locally manufactured vehicle or import value as assessed by Customs Authority inclusive of all applicable taxes, duties, levies and charge exceeds this amount, the buyer will be declared as an “ineligible person”. These individuals will be required to show their financial standing by presenting their last filed tax returns when applying for booking, purchase, or registration of the vehicle