ISLAMABAD: The federal government generates a substantial annual revenue of Rs 954 billion from taxes imposed on electricity bills, as revealed in newly released documents.
Of this total, the federal government collects Rs391 billion, while the provinces receive Rs563 billion.
The breakdown of this tax revenue is as follows:
- General Sales Tax (GST): An 18% GST is applied to all consumers, including households, commercial establishments, industries, and agricultural users, contributing significantly to the overall tax revenue.
- Income Tax: The government collects Rs98 billion from income tax, which constitutes 10% to 12% of electricity bills.
- Advance Tax: A 7.5% advance tax is imposed on 25,000 bills from non-filers, bringing in Rs4 billion.
- Additional Tax: An additional Rs13 billion is generated through various extra tax measures.
- Extra Sales Tax: An extra Rs54 billion is collected from additional sales tax.
- Retailers’ Sales Tax: A 7.5% tax on retailers brings in Rs9 billion.
- Electricity Duty: The government collects Rs53 billion through a 1.5% duty on electricity usage.
- PTV Fee: A fee of Rs14 billion is collected for Pakistan Television (PTV) services.
In total, electricity bills are subject to eight different types of taxes, with consumers paying an average of Rs9 per unit in taxes.
This detailed tax structure highlights the significant role that electricity bill taxes play in generating government revenue and emphasizes the diverse sources of income derived from utility services.
I am an experienced writer, analyst, and author. My exposure in English journalism spans more than 28 years. In the past, I have been working with daily The Muslim (Lahore Bureau), daily Business Recorder (Lahore/Islamabad Bureaus), Daily Times, Islamabad, daily The Nation (Lahore and Karachi). With daily The Nation, I have served as Resident Editor, Karachi. Since 2009, I have been working as a Freelance Writer/Editor for American organizations.
