Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb has renewed calls for a simplified tax return form for salaried individuals, describing the current version as unnecessarily complicated for one of the country’s most heavily documented taxpayer segments. He made the remarks at the Federal Board of Revenue headquarters in Islamabad on Wednesday, during a news conference held to launch a new mobile application for the Fixed Tax Asaan Scheme aimed at small traders and shopkeepers.

Aurangzeb said he saw no logic behind the existing form, noting that even someone with an MBA would struggle to complete it. He pointed out that a large share of salaried income, around 70 percent by his estimate, is deposited directly into bank accounts after tax has already been deducted, leaving little additional income activity that would justify such an extensive filing process for most salaried taxpayers. The minister was joined at the news conference by Minister of State for Finance Bilal Azhar, FBR Chairman Rashid Mahmood Langrial, and representatives of the trading community.

The centrepiece of the event was the launch of the Asaan Tajir mobile application, developed to allow small traders and shopkeepers to register and file returns digitally under the Fixed Tax Asaan Scheme. The app features a simplified form in Urdu and is currently available for download on the Google Play Store. During registration, the app generates a payment slip identification number that traders can use to pay their tax directly through the platform, after which users receive confirmation of their registration and updated filer status along with details of the benefits available to them under the scheme.

Bilal Azhar said the application would also be made available on Apple’s App Store in the near future, with versions in Pashto, Balochi and Sindhi expected to be rolled out by the first week of September. He added that traders needing assistance with registration would be able to visit designated focal offices and officials stationed at Regional Tax Offices in each district. Azhar also displayed a physical green identification plate containing security features that will be issued to traders who register under the scheme, saying those who sign up before the tax filing deadline would receive the plate free of cost, with its eventual price expected to be capped at around Rs 1,500.

FBR Chairman Rashid Mahmood Langrial said that shopkeepers displaying the identification plate would not be visited by FBR officers or officials for routine tax matters, provided they were bona fide registered participants in the scheme. He said the FBR was hopeful the initiative would generate strong uptake in terms of both trader registration and overall revenue collection. The scheme was first announced ahead of the federal budget on June 5, following which the government worked on developing the mobile application and the identification plates over the following months.

Separately, addressing reporters at the same event, Aurangzeb confirmed that Pakistan has formally requested a US Exchange Stabilisation Support Facility as part of broader efforts to strengthen the rupee, stabilise the country’s foreign exchange reserves and reduce its reliance on repeated loan rollovers. He said negotiations with the United States on the matter are currently underway, with Pakistan anticipating a response from either the US Treasury or the US Export-Import Bank by the end of September 2026. The request, reported to be in the region of $10 billion, is intended primarily as a signal of confidence in Pakistan’s currency and external sector stability rather than functioning as a conventional loan facility.

Aurangzeb also said Pakistan is working to shift its debt profile toward longer maturities of five, seven and ten years, aiming to reduce the country’s dependence on repeatedly rolling over shorter term bilateral loans. He said the government is exploring options to extend the maturity periods of existing bilateral loans to as long as a decade as part of this broader debt management strategy.