ISLAMABAD (National Times)- The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has changed the criteria for non-resident Pakistani businessmen to become tax resident individuals which was introduced by the PTI government in 2019.

According to Finance Bill 2023, non-resident Pakistani businessmen must now file their income tax returns regardless of the length of their stay in Pakistan and pay the requisite tax amount to become tax residents.

Through the Finance Act of 2019, the definition of a resident individual was expanded to include a person who stays in Pakistan for at least 120 days during the tax year and for a total of 365 days or more over the prior four years.

The aforementioned criterion for assessing a person’s residential status was eliminated by the Act. This means that a person’s residence status can only be ascertained by his physical presence in Pakistan for at least 183 days during the tax year in question.