<\/p>\n
The Finance Bill, 2025, was approved by parliament on Thursday, meaning that the Rs17.57 trillion budget for the coming fiscal year has been greenlit.<\/p>\n
The PPP on Wednesday voiced strong reservations over a set of politically unpopular provisions in the federal budget for the next fiscal year, urging the government to amend \u201ccontentious\u201d clauses ahead of its expected approval in the National Assembly today (Thursday).<\/p>\n
Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb\u2019s amendments to various legislation, including the Income Tax Ordnance, 2001, were all approved, while opposition amendments were rejected, according to a Dawn.com<\/em> correspondent.<\/p>\n The bill was read out in the assembly and approved clause by clause. The session has been adjourned until 11am tomorrow.<\/p>\n Addressing the House, PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said his party would \u201chappily support the budget,\u201d since the government had accepted the party\u2019s proposals.<\/p>\n \u201cWe appreciate the government\u2019s efforts as BISP\u2019s (Benazir Income Support Programme) budget has been increased,\u201d he said. \u201cMoreover, the salaried class will not be taxed if their income equals to Rs1.2m per year and the solar tax has been reduced by 50 per cent.\u201d<\/p>\n Bilawal added that after the PPP\u2019s initial rejection, their recommendations regarding the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) were accepted.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are grateful to the government and the prime minister for accepting our proposals,\u201d Bilawal said.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, amendments to the Sales Tax Act, 1990, presented by Aurangzeb were approved by a majority vote in the House.<\/p>\n The amendment granted the finance committee powers to arrest traders involved in tax fraud exceeding Rs50 million. The federal government had earlier proposed an amendment to give the powers of arrest to the tax commissioner.<\/p>\n \u201cThe FBR will not have the power of arrest during the investigation stage,\u201d the amendment added.<\/p>\n All amendments introduced by the opposition in the Sales Tax Act were rejected by majority vote.<\/p>\n Similarly, an amendment to the Salaries and Allowances Act was presented with the support of the finance minister, according to which ministers and ministers of state will receive the same salary as members of parliament.<\/p>\n The amendment was approved by a majority vote.<\/p>\n During the session, 107 entities\u2014 including lawyers\u2019 bodies, hospitals and government projects \u2014 were granted tax-exempt status as part of amendments to the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001.<\/p>\n The finance minister\u2019s amendments were all approved, while those presented by the opposition were rejected.<\/p>\n According to the amendments, the following institutions and organisations are exempt from tax:<\/p>\n Under the amended ordinance, the pensions of former presidents and their widows will also be tax-exempt.<\/p>\n107 institutions granted tax-exempt status<\/h2>\n
\n