The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has rejected proposals by the Association of Builders and Developers (ABAD) to ease restrictions on property purchases, following a recent meeting of the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Finance. During a meeting chaired by Bilal Azhar Kiani, a member of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), FBR officials confirmed that the requirement for questioning property purchases above Rs10 million cannot be waived. The officials stated that tax filers would still be required to disclose their sources of income via a revised wealth statement, and that changes to property evaluation for tax purposes-such as allowing gold, stocks, bonds, or inherited properties to be considered-are not permissible under current laws. In the meeting, ABAD suggested that there should be no inquiries for properties worth up to Rs25 million and the first house purchased for up to Rs50 million. They expressed concern that FBR’s new regulations could drive investment out of Pakistan. However, FBR officials responded that property purchases would be recorded under the NTN (National Tax Number) when the property is purchased, and the registrar will ensure that the new property is entered into the system. Buyers will then approve the property entry via their accounts. Kiani, suggested that efforts should be made to simplify the property purchasing process. He proposed amendments in tax laws to include spouses, children, and dependents, to clarify the eligibility for cash and cash equivalents, and to allow revisions in wealth statements. The subcommittee also recommended that the FBR chairman submit a revised draft of the tax amendment recommendations for further review.