Pakistan’s Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has decided to expand the Track and Trace System (TTS) to several new sectors, including steel, pharmaceuticals, spices, biscuits and other packaged products, after reporting strong results in the sugar, cigarette, fertilizer and cement industries.
According to FBR sources, the system, which uses unique identification markings on products, has helped the tax authority prevent tax evasion worth billions of rupees by ensuring better monitoring of production and sales.
Regulatory experts say the Track and Trace System has significantly strengthened enforcement against tax evasion, illegal trade and under-reporting of production data in Pakistan. In recent months, FBR actions against illegal tobacco, sugar and other products have intensified under the system.
Sources said several sugar mills were sealed after failing to install Track and Trace stamps on their production units. Large consignments of illegal cigarettes worth hundreds of millions of rupees were also seized from the market after being found without the mandatory Track and Trace markings.
Experts associated with the regulatory framework say the system has now evolved into a nationwide electronic monitoring mechanism. By installing secure, sequential and tamper-proof unique identification markings at the production stage, the system enables real-time monitoring of manufacturing volumes.
These identification markings allow enforcement agencies to track goods across the entire supply chain, from factory floors to retail outlets. This has led to improved compliance with tax laws, stronger documentation, more effective audits and a substantial reduction in revenue losses, experts added.
Analysts say when products are fully traceable, tax collection becomes more efficient, market competition becomes fairer and revenue leakage can be systematically controlled.