The International Monetary Fund (IMF), in its Governance and Corruption Diagnostic Assessment Report on Pakistan, has called for the robust implementation of the National Tariff Policy 2025–30, stressing the need for continued reforms to simplify the country’s complex tariff structure.
The report highlights significant shortcomings within the National Tariff Commission (NTC), noting that its heavy reliance on external consultants and susceptibility to lobbying groups must be curtailed. The IMF recommends enhancing the NTC’s technical expertise, strengthening its institutional credibility, and reducing external interference to ensure impartial decision-making.
Underscoring persistent governance challenges, the assessment points to weaknesses in customs enforcement that are undermining the effectiveness of tariff reforms. It proposes eliminating systemic flaws in the customs framework, including abolishing Section 18-A of the Fifth Schedule and tightening controls on exemptions granted under Section 19 of the Customs Act. The IMF also stresses the need to drastically reduce discretionary tax exemptions to bring coherence to Pakistan’s tariff regime.
Meanwhile, Pakistan has accepted a key IMF condition to conduct a special audit of supplementary grants issued over the past decade, according to Finance Ministry sources. The decision comes as the government concluded 10 days of technical discussions with the IMF, during which both sides reviewed progress on budget-related targets.
Officials confirmed that Islamabad has also agreed to limit the federal government’s discretionary powers to issue supplementary grants—another critical IMF benchmark aimed at improving fiscal transparency.
The IMF’s technical mission, which arrived on November 11, focused on public finance management reforms and measures to enhance transparency in the overall budget process.