ISLAMABAD, MAY 16: /DNA/ – The Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) leadership has reiterated its commitment to meaningful tax reforms while stressing the need for transparency and broad-based consultation with stakeholders. The ICCI urges the government to ensure that all tax reform measures are rooted in openness and inclusivity, engaging with stakeholders to foster a collaborative approach. This approach, the ICCI believes, will lead to more effective and sustainable tax reforms that benefit all parties involved.
In a joint statement issued on Friday, ICCI President Nasir Mansoor Qureshi, Senior Vice President Abdul Rehman Siddiqui, and Vice President Nasir Mehmood Chaudhry demanded the immediate withdrawal of the recently promulgated Income Tax Amendment Ordinance 2025. The ICCI leadership stressed that this amendment is counterproductive to economic stability and the growth of businesses in Pakistan.
On his part, President Nasir Mansoor Qureshi emphasized that frequent ad-hoc changes in tax laws create uncertainty, discourage investment, and undermine the government’s own stated objective of broadening the tax base. He added that instead of expanding the tax net and promoting voluntary compliance, the new ordinance imposes additional burdens on already compliant taxpayers.
The ICCI expressed grave concern over certain ordinance provisions that empower tax officials with arbitrary authority, including freezing bank accounts and issuing recovery notices without prior intimation or due legal process. Such actions, the Chamber believes, are detrimental to investor confidence and threaten the country’s fragile economic recovery.
“The Income Tax Amendment 2025 is anti-business in nature and should be withdrawn immediately to prevent further harm to the economy,” the statement concluded.
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