Advisor Salehuddin to meet NBR officials Tuesday but pen-down protest set to go on

Finance Advisor Salehuddin Ahmed is set to meet with the National Board of Revenue (NBR) officials demanding the government back down from splitting the agency into two divisions.

The meeting will take place at the finance ministry on Tuesday afternoon, according to the NBR's public relations department.

News of the planned talks came amid an ongoing pen-down protest by the revenue officials.

Protest organisers, however, said they have yet to receive any “formal” invitation for the meeting.

As a result, they will continue with their protest on Monday.

The NBR Reform Unity Council, which is leading the demonstration, has extended the pen-down programme for a third phase.

It first began with work abstention on Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday, followed by a continuation on Sunday.

Now, the protest is set to continue for one more day.

In a media statement e issued on Sunday afternoon, the organisation said: “We have learned through the media that the finanace advisor will sit with NBR officials at 3:30pm next Tuesday.”

 “We, however, have yet to receive any specific or official proposal in this regard. Our programme will continue [Monday] from 9am to 3pm as before.”

According to the organisers, the “same” exceptions will apply as before—international passenger services, export operations and national budget preparation activities will remain outside the scope of the strike.

All tax zones, value-added tax (VAT) commissionerates and customs stations across the country will observe the pen-down programme.

Earlier, NBR spokesperson Al Amin Sheikh confirmed in a message that the advisor would sit with NBR officials on Tuesday to discuss the reforms.

The interim government issued the ordinance on Monday night, following draft approval by the Advisory Council on Apr 17.

It bifurcates the NBR into a Revenue Policy Division and a Revenue Administration Division.

Despite plans for a swift rollout, the draft ordinance faced backlash once it was published online.

Officers from the Income Tax and Customs cadres voiced strong objections, with their associations calling for the ordinance to be revoked.

According to Clause 4(4) of the ordinance, positions within the Revenue Policy Division will be filled by officers with expertise in tax, customs, VAT, economics, business administration, research, statistics, administration, audit, and law.

It adds “assessment of tax law enforcement and revenue collection trends” to the mandate of the Revenue Policy Division.

The ordinance also stipulates that public servants with experience in revenue collection will be given preference for the role of secretary in the Revenue Administration Division.

Administrative posts in this division may be filled by officers from the Income Tax, Customs, and Administration cadres.

Currently, the top NBR positions are occupied by BCS (Tax) and BCS (Customs & Excise) cadre officers, which align with their designated roles.

The ordinance allows for the appointment of any “suitably qualified government officer” as secretary of the Revenue Policy Division.

It adds that with the dissolution of the NBR, its existing personnel will be absorbed into the Revenue Administration Division. The structure of both new divisions will be defined through future government notifications.