FBR’s ‘Lifestyle Monitoring Cell’ zeroes in on 20 suspected tax evaders

• Intelligence reports are shared with RTOs at the national level for action.
• Investigations target rich assets, minimal income tax returns.
• Three tax evasion cases analyzed by investigators.

ISLAMABAD: FBR’s lifestyle monitoring unit has flagged more than 20 cases where taxpayers show multi-million rupee assets, luxury vehicles and frequent trips abroad, yet declare negligible assets in their tax returns. The News was mentioned.

Investigators point to three cases. In one case, a person from southern Punjab allegedly owned 19 late-model vehicles worth Rs 624 million, but in the tax year 2020 he declared only one vehicle worth Rs 1 million.

For tax years 2021, 2022 and 2023, the same filer reported a Toyota Yaris worth Rs 3.075 million, while in tax year 2024 he reported ‘N/A’ for vehicle ownership.

The FBR has set up the Lifestyle Monitoring Cell in the Directorate of Information and Investigation (I&I) of the Inland Revenue with the mandate to check those who flaunt their lifestyle on social media but contribute negligible to the national kitty by declaring and paying their taxes.

The intelligence reports have been shared with the respective Regional Tax Office (RTO) across Pakistan and legal proceedings have already been initiated to recover taxes.

According to details, a digital content creator and travel vlogger frequently took luxury international travel during tax years 2020 to 2025. In 2020 he traveled to the Seychelles (tropical island vacation), but no international travel was recorded in 2021 (likely due to Covid-19 restrictions).

In 2022, he made multiple trips, including the UAE (Dubai), the Philippines, Spain and the Netherlands. In tax year 2023, he traveled to Turkey, the United Kingdom (UK), the Maldives and Georgia. In 2024, extensive travel took place throughout Europe and the Middle East, including Saudi Arabia (multiple visits, possibly for pilgrimage or events), Croatia, Italy, Portugal, Hungary, France, Belgium (to attend the Tomorrowland music festival), and Switzerland.

In 2025 he visited Sweden, Denmark, Greece, Saudi Arabia, France, Austria and the Czech Republic. After checking his filed returns, the FBR found that he had declared income of Rs 490,800 with declared expenditure of Rs 390,000 and had net assets of Rs 1,090,800, despite figures of him spending on luxury holidays in Seychelles.

In the tax year 2021, declared income was shown at Rs 541,880 with declared expenses of Rs 385,000 and by the end of the year his net assets were Rs 1,232,680 but there was no travel information due to Covid restrictions

In 2022, the declared income was Rs 564,040 and the declared expenses were Rs 396,000 and the net assets were around Rs 1,387,720. In 2023, the declared income was Rs 784,600 but expenses were shown at Rs 480,000 and net assets were shown at Rs 1,672,320 by the end of the year.

In the tax year 2024, the income declared in the returns filed appeared at Rs 816,800, but the expenses incurred amounted to Rs 504,000, while the net assets remained at Rs 1,929,120 till the end of the year, despite evidence of multiple visits abroad. This shows blatantly hidden income.

In the second case, the Lifestyle Monitoring Cell found hidden assets of Rs 180,500,000 (Rs 180.5 million). This person belongs to a political family from south Punjab. According to publicly available data, he owns four high-value vehicles but did not declare them on his tax returns and the ones used by his father.

He owns a Lexus LX 570 — Flagship Luxury SUV Model 2019, with an estimated market value of Rs 80 million, a Toyota Fortuner Legender SUV worth Rs 15 million, a Suzuki Hayabusa (2021) Super High Performance Bike worth Rs 5.5 million, a BMW Sexury Rs5 million

The taxpayer was registered on 23-01-12. In the tax year 2023, only two motorcycles were declared, including a BMW M1000 RR (Rs 14.2 million) and a BMW R1250GS (Rs 9.28 million). The total declared value stands at Rs 31.28 million.

In tax year 2024, the same motorcycle (BMW M1000RR) was declared on the returns and the BMW 1250GS was not listed.

Investigations show that the taxpayer reported only a negligible portion of his actual observable assets and did not disclose the sources of funds used to purchase the hidden vehicles. This pattern strongly suggests tax evasion.

In the third case, the value of hidden assets is estimated at Rs 624 million. The FBR found evidence that the taxpayer owned and operated 19 vehicles, including sports cars, luxury SUVs, off-road trucks, motorcycles and an ATV.

The Lifestyle Monitoring Cell of FBR found that the taxpayer owned and used a Chevrolet Corvette C8 (Stingray) 2020 model with a market value of Rs 80 million, a Yamaha Raptor 700R ATV (700cc) worth Rs 6.5 million, a Harley-Davidson Rs250cc, worth Rs2001 Roadmaster worth Rs.0.5 million.

The catalog also includes a Chevrolet Silverado worth Rs 40 million. two Toyota Hilux Revo double cab units (2.4L diesel) worth Rs 40 million; a Toyota FJ Cruiser worth Rs 15 million; and a Ford F-150 Raptor worth Rs 70 million.

In addition, the taxpayer used a Toyota Land Cruiser 70-series worth Rs.5 million. a Toyota Land Cruiser 70-Series Pickup worth Rs 4 million; a Toyota 4Runner (4×4 SUV) worth Rs 60 million; and a Toyota Land Cruiser 300 Series worth Rs 90 million.

Additional vehicles listed are a Range Rover worth Rs 80 million; an Audi Q7 worth Rs 30 crore; a Toyota Tundra worth Rs 25 million; and a Toyota Tacoma worth Rs 15 million.

Finally, the taxpayer owned a Toyota Land Cruiser 200 Series worth Rs.40 million. a Toyota Land Cruiser 100-Series worth Rs 25 million; and a Mercedes Benz (Sedan) worth Rs.9 million.

The FBR found that none of these luxury vehicles appear in the tax payer’s property declaration. When contacted the concerned Observatory said that investigations are being conducted against the possible tax evaders but they could not lock their identity based on income tax obligations.