KTBA urges FBR to lift IRIS restriction on opening wealth balance for tax year 2026

October 24, 2026 (MLN): The Karachi Tax Bar Association (KTBA) has asked the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to lift a restriction in its IRIS filing system that stops individuals who return to Pakistan after a period as non-residents from entering the correct opening wealth balance for tax year 2026.

In a letter to FBR Member Inland Revenue Operations Zubair Bilal, the association said IRIS automatically brings forward the wealth balance from the last wealth statement on record and gives taxpayers no option to edit it, said a press release issued.

The association said this causes difficulty for individuals who were non-residents for the years in between and so were not required to file wealth statements, but who later returned and became residents again.

It noted that under Section 116(2) of the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001, every resident individual who files an income tax return must also submit a wealth statement and a wealth reconciliation statement for that year.

The association explained the problem with an example of a taxpayer who was a Pakistani resident up to tax year 2023, which ended on June 30, 2023, and then became a non-resident for tax years 2024 and 2025.

During those two years, the person declared only Pakistan-source income and filed no wealth statements.

After coming back and regaining resident status in tax year 2026, the individual became liable to file wealth and reconciliation statements. IRIS, however, kept showing the wealth balance as of June 30, 2023 as the opening figure, leaving the taxpayer unable to enter the appropriate amount for tax year 2026.

The association said this makes it hard to reconcile the change in wealth for the relevant year without accounting for the intervening years of non-residence.

It urged the FBR to change the validation mechanism in IRIS 2.0 so returning residents can enter the right opening wealth balance and complete their filings, without preparing a reconciliation that covers years in which no wealth statement was due.

The association also argued that taxpayers should be allowed to declare opening wealth balances based on relevant information and records, subject to applicable tax laws.

It said the filing system should help taxpayers comply with Section 116(2) without widening the scope of the statutory obligation, and called for an urgent resolution so affected individuals can submit their tax year 2026 wealth statements and reconciliations correctly.

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