FBR announces rewards for employees

ISLAMABAD: The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has approved the enhancement of the reward ceiling for Inland Revenue officials from 18 to 24 salaries for meritorious services.

To this effect, the FBR has accorded approval for key amendments to the Inland Revenue Reward Rules, 2021, enhancing the upper limit for meritorious rewards and introducing a new evaluation mechanism for ex-cadre officers and staff.

The decisions were made at the third meeting of the Board-in-Council of the FBR in the fiscal year 2025-26, which was held in the FBR Headquarters in Islamabad under the chairmanship of the FBR Chairman.

The meeting was attended by senior members of the board, while a leave of absence was granted to three of its members. According to sources, the Board has given unanimous approval to increasing the maximum reward limit from 18 salaries to 24 salaries per financial year.

The amendment extends to the employees falling within Rule 6 of the Inland Revenue Reward Rules. The Board considered and approved the draft criteria for the evaluation of officers and staff.

The Member (Admin & HR) briefed the meeting that the revised reward framework would divide ex-cadre officers (BS-16 and above) and staff (BS-1 to BS-15) into various performance tiers that would determine eligibility for quarterly rewards.

The system will be made transparent by introducing a weighted assessment mechanism that involves commissioners, committees, and senior members. Some members at the meeting suggested revisiting the weightage of the Assessment Committee.

However, the majority of the members, including the Chairman, supported the proposed procedure. It was also decided that the new system would be fully IT-based, and PRAL was asked to deploy the digital framework within seven days.

The Board further observed that rewards up to 36 months’ basic salary are already allowed under the Customs Reward Rules, 2012, and no amendment is needed at this stage.

Though the Board did not support the cadre officers’ exclusion from the reward structure, it decided that the issue of incentives for exceptional performance by cadre officers would be taken up separately in the next meeting.