ISLAMABAD: Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Dr Tariq Fazal Chaudhry on Thursday apprised the Senate that the government was seriously considering proposals to provide relief in PTA mobile phone taxes for overseas Pakistanis to facilitate expatriates visiting the country.
Responding to a supplementary question raised by Abid Sher Ali during the Question-Hour, the minister said overseas Pakistanis had repeatedly demanded relaxation in PTA taxes on mobile phones during overseas conventions held in Pakistan. He said mobile phones brought from abroad remained functional for a limited period of a few weeks, after which services were suspended unless the prescribed PTA tax was paid.
The minister said different tax rates had been fixed for different mobile phone models, and the issue of easing the burden on overseas Pakistanis was currently under serious consideration by the government.
The development comes weeks after the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Finance directed the FBR and Tax Policy Unit to consider rationalisation of duty and taxes on imported mobile phones in the upcoming budget for 2026-27.
