Pakistan VAT Rates 2026
Pakistan (پاکستان (Pākistān)) levies Value Added Tax as Sales Tax (GST). The standard rate is 18%, applied to most goods and services. Pakistan applies a single flat rate with no reduced rates.
Current rates — 2026
| Type | Rate | Applies to |
|---|---|---|
| Standard | 18% | Most goods and services |
| Zero-rated | 0% | Exports (under the Export Facilitation Scheme) |
Registration and filing
| Registration threshold | Manufacturers and importers register regardless of size; retailer thresholds set by annual finance acts |
| Tax authority | Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) |
| Filing frequency | Monthly returns through the IRIS portal |
Access rates via API
The TaxID API returns current VAT and GST rates for 200+ countries and territories. Use the /api/v1/rates/PK endpoint to get Pakistan data programmatically. Responses are cached for 24 hours.
curl http://localhost:3000/api/v1/rates/PK
# No authentication required for rate lookups
# Response:
# { "country_code": "PK", "tax_type": "vat",
# "standard_rate": 18, "reduced_rates": [],
# "currency": "PKR", "last_updated": "2026-06-12" }Fetching the rate in code
// Fetch current Pakistan VAT rates (no auth required)
const rates = await fetch('http://localhost:3000/api/v1/rates/PK').then(r => r.json());
// → { standard_rate: 18, reduced_rates: [],
// currency: 'PKR' }
applyRate(rates.standard_rate);About Pakistan VAT
Pakistan's "sales tax" is a VAT in mechanics but split by constitution: the federal FBR taxes goods at 18%, while each province levies its own sales tax on services (13%–16%), so a national supplier may file five-plus returns a month. Export sectors lost their cherished zero-rating on domestic sales in 2019, a recurring battleground in IMF negotiations. Higher "further tax" surcharges punish sales to unregistered buyers, a stick to drag the informal economy into registration.
VAT in Pakistan is administered by the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR).
Sources: PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries · Federal Board of Revenue (accessed Jun 2026)
Rate history
- 2023Standard rate raised from 17% to 18% in the mini-budget
Frequently asked questions
What is the sales tax rate in Pakistan in 2026?
18% federal sales tax on goods; services are taxed separately by provinces at roughly 13%–16%.
Is Pakistan's sales tax a VAT?
Functionally yes for goods — it is credit-invoice based — but services taxation is fragmented across four provincial authorities plus the federal capital.
Related concepts and guides: