How to File Income Tax Return for Salaried Person in Pakistan 2026

Filing an income tax return for the first time can feel complicated. You log in to FBR IRIS and suddenly see salary fields, tax deductions, withholding taxes, computations, assets, liabilities, personal expenses and a wealth reconciliation.

But for a salaried person, the process becomes much easier once you understand which section comes first and how the figures connect with each other.

In this guide, we will file a salaried person's income tax return for Tax Year 2026 through the current FBR IRIS interface, step by step.

More importantly, we will not use random figures just to explain the screens. We will follow one practical example throughout the guide.

Example used in this guide

These figures belong only to the example being demonstrated. Do not copy them into your own return. Your return must be based on your own salary certificate, tax deductions, assets, liabilities, expenses and other financial records.

Important: This guide is for general educational assistance. Tax treatment can depend on individual circumstances, and FBR may update IRIS, forms, procedures or deadlines. Verify your information and current FBR requirements before submitting your return.

1.What Is Tax Year 2026 in Pakistan?

For the normal tax year shown in the IRIS return used in this guide, Tax Year 2026 covers 1 July 2025 to 30 June 2026.

That means you should prepare your information for this period—not simply January to December 2026.

Before starting, it is useful to have your:

• annual salary certificate or payroll statement;
• employer's tax deduction information;
• bank and investment information;
• other withholding tax records;
• details of assets and liabilities;
• previous year's wealth statement, where applicable;
• information about major purchases or disposals during the year; and
• reasonable details of your personal and household expenses.

Once these are available, you can start the return.

1.1.Step 1: Log in to FBR IRIS

Open the official FBR IRIS portal.

The IRIS login screen asks for your CNIC/NTN and password. Enter your own credentials and log in.

1.1.1.A Quick Security Check Before Logging In

Because your IRIS account contains sensitive tax and financial information, always confirm that you are accessing the genuine FBR/IRIS service.

Never give your IRIS password or verification credentials to an unknown person.

Once logged in, you will reach the main IRIS dashboard.

1.2.Step 2: Start the Income Tax Return for Tax Year 2026

On the IRIS dashboard, you will see different FBR services.

For this return, select the tile:

Submit your Income Tax Return – for tax year 2026

The dashboard used for this guide also displays services for sales tax, withholding statements, e-payments and other FBR functions. A salaried person filing the annual income tax return should start with the Income Tax Return option.

1.2.1.What Is the Last Date for Tax Year 2026?

The IRIS notice captured during this filing process displays:

Last Date: 30 September 2026

1.3.Step 3: Select Tax Year 2026

After starting a new return, IRIS opens the Normal Return (Ind/AOP/COY) window.

Enter or select 2026 as the Tax Period.

IRIS then provides the corresponding period:

01-Jul-2025 – 30-Jun-2026

Select it and continue.

Make sure you choose the correct year before continuing. Entering information under the wrong tax period can create unnecessary problems later.

1.4.Step 4: Select Your Source of Income

IRIS next asks:

“Please select your sources of income for the tax year.”

The available options shown in the interface include:

• Income from Salary
• Property Rental Income
• Income from Other Sources
• Income from Business
• Capital Gain
• Declaration of Foreign Assets or Foreign Income
• Income from Agriculture
• No Income

Because our example is for a salaried person, we select:

✓ Income from Salary

IRIS also asks:

Are you a Tax Resident of Pakistan as per sections 82 to 84 of ITO, 2001?

Answer according to your actual circumstances.

Do not select an additional income source merely because it appears in the list. Your selections should reflect your actual sources of income.

1.5.Step 5: Review the Summary of Economic Transactions

Before starting the detailed return, IRIS may display a Summary of Economic Transactions for the selected tax year.

In the example, the screen clearly identifies:

TAX PERIOD
July 1, 2025 – June 30, 2026

IRIS also explains that the available economic-transaction data is indicative and may continue to update as information becomes available.

Review the available information carefully.

Where needed, you can use:

Download Detailed Data

After reviewing it, click:

Start Return Filing

1.6.Step 6: Understand the Main IRIS Return Screen

After selecting Start Return Filing, IRIS opens the detailed return.

For our salaried-person example, the main sections include:

Employment

• Salary
• Tax Deductions

Tax Chargeable / Payments

and:

116 – Wealth Statement

You will also see buttons such as:

• Add Income Sources
• Summary of Economic Transactions
• Import Previous Return
• Calculate

We will work through the relevant sections one by one.

1.7.Step 7: Add Your Employer Details

Open:

Employment → Salary

At the top of the Salary section, IRIS provides an Employer Details area.

Select:

+ ADD EMPLOYER DETAILS

A window appears asking for:

• Employer Registration No.
• Employer Name

Caption:
Enter the relevant employer registration number and employer name in the Salary section of IRIS.

Enter the information according to your actual employment record.

If you had more than one employer during the year, make sure your return appropriately reflects the salary information relevant to those employments.

1.8.Step 8: Enter Salary Income

The Salary section contains several possible categories.

The IRIS screen shown in our example includes:

• Pay, Wages or Other Remuneration
• Allowances
• Arrears of Salary
• Pension / Annuity u/s 12(2)(f)
• Expenditure Reimbursement
• Value of Perquisites
• Profits in Lieu of or in Addition to Pay, Wages or Other Remuneration

Enter only the categories applicable to your case.

In our completed example, IRIS shows:

Caption:
Example salary entry: Rs. 1,564,085 total salary, including Rs. 18,000 shown as exempt and Rs. 1,546,085 subject to normal tax.

Important

The Rs. 18,000 exemption shown in this example should not be copied automatically.

It belongs to this particular return.

Your salary and its tax treatment should be entered according to your own salary certificate and circumstances.

1.9.Step 9: Cross-Check Your Salary Tax

Before proceeding further, it is useful to independently estimate the tax applicable to your salary.

You can use the HisaabKit Salary Tax Calculator for this purpose.

Internal CTA:

1.9.1.Calculate Your Salary Tax Before Filing

Enter your salary and get an estimate before completing your FBR return.

→ Use Salary Tax Calculator Pakistan

This is especially useful for identifying obvious entry mistakes.

For example, if the tax shown by IRIS differs substantially from what you expected, recheck whether:

• annual salary has been entered correctly;
• an exempt amount has been classified correctly;
• salary has been entered in the correct field; and
• other relevant information has been included.

The HisaabKit calculation should be treated as a practical cross-check, not as a replacement for IRIS or professional tax advice where required.

1.10.Step 10: Review Tax Deducted by Your Employer:

Now open

Employment → Tax Deductions

Under Adjustable Tax, the example contains:

Salary of Employees u/s 149

with:

Caption:
The example shows Rs. 46,049 tax deducted against salary under the “Salary of Employees u/s 149” entry.

Compare this amount with your employer's salary/tax certificate or reliable payroll records.

If IRIS contains a pre-filled figure, review it instead of assuming that it must automatically be correct.

1.11.Step 11: Review Other Withholding Taxes

Now look at:

Tax Chargeable / Payments → Withholding Tax

Under Adjustable Tax, the example includes more than just employer-deducted salary tax.

It shows:

The total withholding tax shown in the example becomes:

Rs. 54,526

because:

Rs. 46,049 + Rs. 6,061 + Rs. 2,416 = Rs. 54,526

These additional withholding taxes can matter when IRIS calculates the final tax position.

Your entries may be completely different from this example, so review the data associated with your own CNIC and records.

1.12.Step 12: Check the Tax Computation

Now open:

Tax Chargeable / Payments → Computations

This is where the figures start coming together.

Our example shows:

The calculation can be understood simply:

Withholding Income Tax − Tax Chargeable

= Rs. 54,526 − Rs. 44,069

= Rs. 10,457

So IRIS displays Rs. 10,457 as refundable income tax in this example.

This does not mean every salaried taxpayer will receive a refund. Depending on the individual return, IRIS may show tax payable, a nil balance or a refundable amount.

1.13.Step 13: Complete the Wealth Statement

Now move to:

116 – Wealth Statement → Personal Assets / Liabilities

This section records the relevant assets and liabilities of the taxpayer.

The IRIS interface contains categories for different kinds of assets, including:

• Immovable Properties (Non-Business)
• Financial Assets & Investments (Non-Business)
• Moveable Assets (Non-Business)
• Any Other Asset(s)
• Assets held on others name
• Business Capital
• Payables / Borrowing / Loan / Credits

In our example, after completing the relevant entries, IRIS shows:

1.13.1.Privacy requirement

Your supplied screenshot contains deliberately obscured asset descriptions, which is good.

For the published article, make sure:

• property details are unreadable;
• bank/account information is hidden;
• CNIC is hidden;
• employer/private identifiers are hidden; and
• no personally identifying financial information remains visible.

The numerical example can remain where you intentionally want readers to understand the calculation.

1.14.Step 14: Add Personal Expenses

Personal expenses are important because they form part of the wealth reconciliation.

IRIS provides + Expenses, where you can choose applicable expense categories.

The selection screen contains options such as:

• Asset Insurance / Security
• Medical
• Educational
• Club
• Functions / Gatherings
• Donation, Zakat, Annuity, Profit on Debt, Life Insurance Premium, etc.
• Other Personal / Household Expenses
• Foreign Travelling
• Local Travelling

After adding the appropriate categories, enter your own annual expense figures.

In our worked example, the completed expenses include:

These are not standard expenses or suggested amounts. They belong only to our example.

Use figures that reasonably represent your own circumstances.

1.15.Step 15: Reconcile Your Net Assets

Now open:

116 – Wealth Statement → Reconciliation of Net Assets

This is one of the most important parts of the entire filing process.

Our example shows:

2.Understanding Wealth Reconciliation in Simple Words

This screen often confuses new filers, but our example makes it much easier to understand.

At the end of the previous year, net assets were:

Rs. 8,385,324

At the end of the current year, they are:

Rs. 9,003,409

Therefore, net wealth increased by:

Rs. 9,003,409 − Rs. 8,385,324 = Rs. 618,085

Now look at the money available during the year.

Total inflows:

Rs. 1,564,085

Personal expenses/outflows:

Rs. 946,000

Money remaining:

Rs. 1,564,085 − Rs. 946,000 = Rs. 618,085

That is exactly the increase in net assets.

So:

Inflows − Outflows = Increase in Net Assets

In our example:

Rs. 1,564,085 − Rs. 946,000 = Rs. 618,085

and:

Rs. 9,003,409 − Rs. 8,385,324 = Rs. 618,085

Both sides agree.

Therefore:

Unreconciled Amount = Rs. 0

This is probably the most useful practical lesson in the entire guide.

3.What If Your Unreconciled Amount Is Not Zero?

Do not simply change a random expense or invent an amount to force IRIS to show zero.

Instead, review your genuine financial information.

For example, determine whether you have omitted an applicable:

• asset;
• liability;
• income amount;
• personal expense;
• gift;
• inheritance;
• foreign remittance;
• contribution by family members; or
• another genuine inflow or outflow.

The objective is not merely to make the software display zero.

The objective is to make your wealth statement correctly explain the movement in your financial position.

3.1.Step 16: Click Calculate and Review Everything

Once salary, withholding tax, assets, liabilities and reconciliation have been completed, click:

CALCULATE

Then review the entire return carefully.

Pay particular attention to these four areas:

3.1.1.1. Salary

Does your annual salary agree with your salary certificate or payroll records?

3.1.2.2. Tax deductions

Does salary tax deducted agree with your employer's information?

Have you reviewed other withholding taxes appearing in IRIS?

3.1.3.3. Tax computation

Does IRIS show the expected taxable income, tax chargeable and withholding tax?

If the result looks unusual, investigate it before submission.

3.1.4.4. Wealth statement

Are the assets, liabilities and personal expenses reasonably complete?

Does the wealth reconciliation make financial sense?

If these areas are correct, you are close to completing the return.

3.2.Step 17: Submit the Income Tax Return

After completing the final review, use the Submit option at the top of IRIS.

Complete any verification or confirmation requested by the system.

After successful submission, retain the submitted return and relevant acknowledgement/records for future reference.

Important

Saving a return and submitting a return are not the same thing.

A saved return may still be a draft.

Make sure the return has actually been submitted successfully.

4.Complete Practical Example — From Salary to Wealth Reconciliation

Now let us connect the entire example in one place.

4.1.Part 1: Salary

Total salary:

Rs. 1,564,085

Less amount shown as exempt:

Rs. 18,000

Salary subject to normal tax:

Rs. 1,546,085

IRIS calculates normal tax:

Rs. 44,069

4.1.1.Part 2: Withholding Tax

Salary tax deducted:

Rs. 46,049

Cellphone-related adjustable tax:

Rs. 6,061

Card/remittance-related adjustable tax:

Rs. 2,416

Total withholding income tax:

Rs. 54,526

Tax chargeable:

Rs. 44,069

Difference:

Rs. 54,526 − Rs. 44,069 = Rs. 10,457

IRIS therefore shows:

Refundable Income Tax: Rs. 10,457

4.1.2.Part 3: Wealth Statement

Previous year's net assets:

Rs. 8,385,324

Current year's net assets:

Rs. 9,003,409

Increase:

Rs. 618,085

Inflows:

Rs. 1,564,085

Personal expenses:

Rs. 946,000

Remaining amount:

Rs. 618,085

So the increase in wealth is fully explained.

Unreconciled Amount: Rs. 0

This is how the different sections of the return connect with each other.

5.Common Mistakes to Avoid When Filing a Salaried Person's Return

A complicated tax return can certainly require professional help, but many problems in straightforward salary returns arise from simple mistakes.

Avoid:

• entering monthly salary instead of annual salary;
• blindly copying another person's figures;
• assuming every pre-filled IRIS amount is necessarily correct;
• putting salary in the wrong category;
• treating another person's exemption as your own;
• ignoring withholding taxes other than salary tax;
• forgetting assets acquired during the year;
• leaving relevant liabilities unreported;
• entering unrealistic personal expenses;
• inventing figures merely to make the unreconciled amount zero;
• submitting without checking Computations; and
• assuming that clicking Save means the return has been filed.

Take a few minutes to review the complete return before submitting it.

6.Final Words

FBR IRIS initially looks complicated because several sections appear together, but a straightforward salaried return becomes much easier when you follow the process in the correct order:

Income Source → Employer → Salary → Tax Deductions → Withholding Tax → Computation → Assets & Liabilities → Personal Expenses → Wealth Reconciliation → Review → Submit

The most important part is not simply entering figures into different boxes.

The figures should tell one consistent financial story.

In our example, Rs. 1,564,085 of inflows minus Rs. 946,000 of personal expenses leaves Rs. 618,085. The taxpayer's net assets also increased by exactly Rs. 618,085.

That is why the final wealth reconciliation reaches:

Unreconciled Amount = Rs. 0

Once you understand that relationship, the salary return and wealth statement stop looking like two separate tasks. They become two parts of the same annual financial picture.