What Is Non-Filer Status Costing You?

Being a non-filer is not a neutral choice. Banks, excise offices and property registrars all deduct tax at a higher rate from people who are not on the Active Taxpayers List, and on most heads that rate is exactly double. Put your own figures in below.

Fill in only what applies to you. Leave the rest blank.

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The profit or interest your bank credits in a year, not your balance.

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Total dividends received in the year. Some company types carry different rates; this uses the general rate.

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Winnings on prize bonds. Raffles and quiz prizes are charged at a higher rate.

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Only counts on days you took out more than Rs 50,000 in total. Enter the total withdrawn on those days.

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Charged once, when the vehicle is registered or first transferred.

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Enter a figure above Even one is enough. A savings account on its own is usually the quickest way to see the difference.

Rates taken from the FBR Withholding Tax Rate Card, Tax Year 2026 (updated to 30 June 2025 per the Finance Act 2025), checked on . This is the card FBR currently lists as in force; a card for Tax Year 2027 had not been published when these figures were checked.

General information only. This compares withholding tax deducted at source under a handful of common heads. It is not your total tax bill, it does not cover business receipts, imports, contracts or exports, and several heads carry different rates for particular company types. Withholding tax is mostly adjustable against your final liability, so the real cost of not filing is that a non-filer usually cannot reclaim it. It is not a substitute for professional advice.

There are three rates, not two

Almost everyone talks about filers and non-filers. The FBR rate card actually has a third column: late filer. It applies to immovable property under sections 236C and 236K, and only there. Buy a house for Rs 20 million and a filer pays Rs 300,000 in advance tax, a late filer pays Rs 900,000, and a non-filer pays Rs 2,100,000 on the same transaction.

Outside property there is no separate late filer rate, because once you have been restored to the Active Taxpayers List you are simply on it. That is the practical argument for filing even after the deadline has gone: the surcharge to get back on the list is a fixed amount, while the higher withholding rates keep applying to everything you do.

Withholding tax is mostly adjustable, and that is the real point

Most of these deductions are advance tax rather than a final charge. If you file a return, they count against what you owe, and if too much was deducted you claim the difference back. A non-filer does not file, so nothing gets adjusted and nothing gets refunded. The higher rate is not the whole cost of staying off the list; the money never coming back is.

Where these figures come from

Every rate in the calculator is taken from the FBR Directorate General of Withholding Taxes rate card for Tax Year 2026, updated to 30 June 2025 under the Finance Act 2025. That is the card FBR currently lists as in force. We used the card itself rather than commentary about it, because three different tax advisory sites gave three different rates for profit on a bank deposit.

Related: what filing late costs, the surcharge for getting back on the list, and the income tax calculator.

Last updated: 29 July 2026

Sources

  • Federal Board of Revenue — fbr.gov.pk, accessed 29 July 2026

Sources

  • Federal Board of Revenue, Directorate General of Withholding Taxes, Withholding Tax Rate Cards: rate card for Tax Year 2026, updated to 30 June 2025 per the Finance Act 2025.
  • Income Tax Ordinance 2001, sections 150, 151, 156, 231AB, 231B, 234, 236C and 236K, and the Tenth Schedule.

Related reading: where filer status actually costs you, and the surcharge for getting back on the list.