The federal government on Wednesday announced a reduction in sales tax on solar panels’ imports from 18% to 10%.
Speaking in the National Assembly, Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar announced the reduction of the 18 percent sales tax imposed on solar panels in the budget to 10 percent.
Dar said that the government has revised some budget proposals after consultations with allies on the budget. The Deputy Prime Minister said that the amount allocated for Sindh universities is being increased from Rs 2.6 billion to Rs 4.6 billion.
It should be noted that the government had announced the imposition of an 18 percent sales tax on solar panels’ imports in the budget for the next fiscal year, which was rejected by the Standing Committee on Finance.
The National Assembly and Senate Standing Committees on Finance and Revenue on Tuesday rejected the government’s proposal to impose an 18 per cent sales tax on solar panel imports.
A week earlier, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb presented the proposed budget for the fiscal year 2025-26 on the floor of the NA, revealing that an 18 percent tax would be applied on imported solar panels, while online businesses and digital marketplaces would also come under the tax net.