FBR bans unregistered sellers from online marketplaces and courier platforms starting July 2025

The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has rolled out a major reform for Pakistan’s digital economy, announcing that online marketplaces (OMPs) and courier services will no longer be allowed to work with unregistered sellers starting July 1, 2025.

In a new income tax circular, the FBR made it clear that all sellers must now register with the tax authority and obtain a National Tax Number (NTN) before they can sell through e-stores, apps, or courier networks. Online platforms and courier companies will be legally required to deny services to unregistered sellers and to submit detailed monthly statements of all transactions conducted on their platforms.

The move is designed to formalize the e-commerce sector, where a large portion of sellers currently operate outside the tax net. To ease compliance, the FBR has also introduced a simplified registration process for assigning NTNs to online vendors.

Under the new regime, withholding taxes will apply to every online order:

• 1% tax on payments made through digital channels such as banks, foreign exchange dealers, or payment gateways.

• 2% tax on transactions made via Cash on Delivery (CoD), collected directly by courier companies.

The FBR explained that this differential is meant to encourage digital payments and move Pakistan towards a cashless economy.

Taxes collected through this framework will be treated as final tax on income from both local e-commerce and export transactions, though some categories under Sections 154 and 154A remain outside its scope. To remove ambiguity, the FBR has also added new definitions for terms like e-commerce, online marketplaces, courier services, and payment intermediaries in the Income Tax Ordinance.

Both payment intermediaries and courier services will be tasked with collecting and depositing these taxes into the national treasury, in addition to filing withholding tax (WHT) statements every month. These reports must detail all transactions made by sellers using their platforms.

The FBR has also warned of strict penalties for non-compliance. Any marketplace, courier service, or intermediary that fails to withhold taxes, file mandatory statements, or ensure seller registration will face enforcement action.

For digital transactions, banks and financial institutions handling payments will act as the official intermediaries. In CoD cases, the courier service—whether directly affiliated with the marketplace or independent—will carry responsibility for tax collection and reporting.

This new policy marks one of the biggest tax reforms for Pakistan’s e-commerce industry, with the government aiming to expand the tax base, curb informal trade, and ensure greater transparency in the fast-growing online retail sector.