Every year, thousands of salaried Pakistanis put off filing their income tax return until the last week of the deadline — not because the process is genuinely hard, but because the IRIS portal looks intimidating the first time you open it. The truth is that a salaried person's return is usually the simplest type to file, since most of your income is already documented by your employer. This guide walks you through the entire process, from registration to submission, so you can file confidently on your own without paying a consultant for a return that takes most people under an hour once they know where to click.
Before You Start: What You Need
Filing goes much faster if you gather these documents first instead of hunting for them mid-session:
- Your CNIC number and the mobile number/email registered with NADRA
- Your salary certificate or annual salary slip breakdown from your employer, showing gross salary and tax already deducted
- Your bank account details (IBAN, account title, bank name)
- Details of any other income — rent received, profit on savings/bank deposits, dividends, or freelance/side income
- Proof of any tax credits you want to claim, such as Zakat paid, donations to approved charities, or investments in pension funds
- Details of assets you own as of 30 June (property, vehicles, bank balances, gold, investments) for the Wealth Statement
Step 1: Register or Log In to IRIS
Go to the official IRIS portal. If you already have an NTN (National Tax Number) or have filed before, simply log in with your CNIC (without dashes) as your username and your password. If this is your first time, click "Registration for Unregistered Person," fill in your CNIC, mobile number, email, and address, and you'll receive separate verification codes by SMS and email. Once verified, IRIS emails you your login credentials — this usually takes a few minutes but can occasionally take longer during peak season, so don't leave registration for the last day.
Step 2: Declare Your Salary Income
Once logged in, select the correct tax year from the top menu, then open "Declaration" and choose the applicable return form — for most salaried individuals this is the simplified statement under the Normal Return workflow. Go to the "Employment" tab and enter your gross annual salary exactly as shown on your salary certificate, along with the tax already withheld by your employer under Section 149. This withheld amount is critical: if you enter it correctly, it offsets against your total tax liability so you aren't taxed twice on income your employer already deducted tax from.
Step 3: Add Other Income and Tax Credits
If you earned profit on a savings account, received rent, or had any side income, declare it under the relevant heads — IRIS separates these into "Income from Other Sources" and "Income from Property." Many banks already deduct withholding tax on profit paid to you, so check your bank statement for the tax deducted and enter it to claim credit. If you paid Zakat under the Zakat and Ushr Ordinance, or donated to an FBR-approved charitable organization, enter these in the tax credits section — they reduce your final payable tax.
Step 4: File the Wealth Statement
Salaried filers are generally required to also submit a Wealth Statement (Statement of Assets and Liabilities) alongside the return. List your assets — property, vehicles, bank balances, provident fund, investments — and your liabilities such as loans. IRIS will show a "Reconciliation" figure; if your declared income doesn't roughly match the increase in your net assets over the year, you'll see a discrepancy that's worth double-checking before submission.
Filing on time isn't just about avoiding penalties — being on the Active Taxpayers List means lower withholding tax rates on banking transactions, vehicle registration, and property purchases, which can save you far more than the return costs you in time.
Step 5: Verify and Submit
Before submitting, use the "Calculate" button so IRIS computes your final tax payable or refundable based on everything entered. If tax is payable, generate a Payment Slip (PSID) from IRIS and pay it through your bank's app, ATM, or over the counter, then attach the paid challan. Once everything matches, click "Verify" — you'll receive an OTP on your registered mobile number to confirm submission. Save the acknowledgment receipt (CPR) for your records. Cross-check details on the main FBR website if you're unsure about current tax year deadlines, as these are announced separately each year.
Common Mistakes First-Time Filers Make
- Entering net salary instead of gross salary, which misstates tax already paid
- Forgetting to declare bank profit, causing a mismatch with data FBR already has from banks
- Leaving the Wealth Statement incomplete or skipping it entirely, which can cause your return to be treated as invalid
- Waiting until the final day, when the IRIS portal often slows down under heavy traffic
Roman Urdu
Har saal Pakistan mein bohat se salaried log apni income tax return file karne mein deadline tak deri kar dete hain — kyunke IRIS portal pehli dafa thora mushkil lagta hai. Lekin salaried person ki return usually sab se simple hoti hai kyunke aap ki zyada tar income employer pehle se report kar chuka hota hai.
Pehle yeh cheezein tayar rakhein: CNIC number, NADRA registered mobile aur email, salary certificate (gross salary aur pehle se katta hua tax), bank account IBAN, koi bhi extra income (rent, bank profit, freelance), Zakat ya donation ki proof, aur 30 June tak apke assets ki list (property, gaari, bank balance, gold).
Step 1: IRIS portal par jaayein. Agar pehli baar file kar rahe hain to "Registration for Unregistered Person" par click karein, CNIC, mobile aur email darj karein, phir SMS aur email se aane wale codes se verify karein. Login credentials email par aa jayenge.
Step 2: Sahi tax year select karke "Declaration" mein jaayein aur "Employment" tab mein apni gross annual salary aur employer ne jitna tax pehle se kaata hai woh darj karein — yeh bohat zaroori hai taake aap par dobara tax na lage.
Step 3: Agar koi aur income hai — jaise bank profit ya rent — to woh "Other Sources" ya "Property" section mein add karein. Zakat aur approved donations tax credits mein darj karein, is se apka final tax kam ho jata hai.
Step 4: Wealth Statement bharna zaroori hai — apne assets aur liabilities ki list dein. Agar reconciliation mein farq aaye to dobara check karein.
Waqt par file karna sirf jurmana bachane ke liye nahi — Active Taxpayers List mein hone se banking, vehicle registration aur property transactions par withholding tax kaafi kam ho jata hai.
Step 5: "Calculate" dabayein taake final tax payable ya refundable pata chale. Agar tax dena hai to PSID payment slip banayein aur bank se pay karein, phir "Verify" par click karke OTP se confirm karein. Receipt (CPR) zaroor save karein. Zyada tafseel ke liye FBR website bhi dekh sakte hain.
Aam ghaltiyan: gross ki bajaye net salary darj karna, bank profit declare na karna, Wealth Statement chhor dena, aur last day tak intezar karna jab portal slow ho jata hai.
