BUDGET 2026-27: NA body questions mobile taxes, EV policy

The National Assembly Standing Committee on Finance, chaired by MNA Naveed Qamar, concluded its series of meetings held for a clause-by-clause review of the Finance Bill 2026. The committee finalised its recommendations and forwarded them to the National Assembly. During the proceedings, Sharmila Faruqui and Muhammad Javed Hanif submitted dissenting notes on the government’s electric vehicle policy and the existing tax structure on imported mobile phones, respectively. The committee reviewed tax rates on imported and locally manufactured mobile phones, while officials outlined a tiered structure based on price. According to the briefing, phones valued up to $30 are taxed at 25pc, while those priced between $31 and $100 fall under a 36pc slab. Devices worth $101 to $200 attract a 40pc tax, while phones in the $201 to $350 range face an effective rate of 38pc. Smartphones priced between $351 and $500 are taxed at 40pc, and those exceeding $500 carry an effective rate of 41pc. Officials said the tax burden ranged from Rs1,500 per unit to as high as Rs141,500, increasing with the price of the handset. They added that 44pc of imported phones fell within the $31 to $100 category, which carries one of the lower tax slabs. The average effective tax rate across all categories stands at 39.6pc. Lawmakers expressed concern over the widespread use of non-PTA phones and proposed introducing an inst