IRIS FBR Login and Password Issues Disrupt Tax Year 2025 Filing

Thousands of Pakistani taxpayers faced serious technical problems on the FBR’s IRIS portal during the Tax Year 2025 return filing period. It included login failures, password recovery errors, and incorrect tax credit calculations that went unresolved until days before the submission cutoff.

The issues were formally flagged by Asif S. Kasbati, Senior Member of the ICAP Fiscal Laws Committee and member of the Pakistan Business Council’s Core Tax Committee. He who described the situation as a significant barrier to compliance for newly registered filers.

What Went Wrong on IRIS

The FBR IRIS portal serves as the primary gateway for FBR tax filing in Pakistan. During Tax Year 2025, three major technical failures disrupted the filing process for millions of users.

1. Login and Password Recovery Failures

Newly registered taxpayers, the very population FBR is trying to bring into the tax net as part of its 10 million taxpayer expansion goal, reported being unable to log in to their IRIS accounts or recover forgotten passwords.

Kasbati confirmed that these issues were only resolved a few days before the filing cutoff. For taxpayers relying on the FBR Active Taxpayer status to maintain compliance, these delays created an unnecessary risk of late filing penalties.

If you need to verify your NTN number or check your current status, do this before attempting to file.

2. Section 4AB Surcharge Not Included in Tax Credit Calculations

Beyond the login problems, Kasbati flagged a more technical and potentially costly calculation error inside IRIS itself.

The system was miscalculating tax credits for:

• Donations to FBR-approved charitable organizations under Section 61
• Voluntary Pension Scheme (VPS) contributions under Section 63

The root cause: IRIS was not including surcharges under Section 4AB when computing total tax. This resulted in tax credits being calculated on a lower base, meaning taxpayers received smaller credits than they were legally entitled to.

“The law clearly defines ‘tax’ to include any amount payable, including surcharges. Sections 61 and 63 require that tax credits be calculated on the total tax assessed, not partially,” Kasbati emphasized.

This is a systemic calculation error, not a user mistake. Any taxpayer who claimed donation or VPS credits during this period may have received a lower credit than legally due. If you need to obtain a corrected tax deduction certificate, consult a professional immediately.

3. Filing Numbers Fell Short

The scale of the disruption is visible in the filing numbers. According to Kasbati, only approximately 5 million returns had been filed by October 13, 2025. It was significantly below the 8.2 million taxpayers on the ATL for 2024.

The gap, over 3 million unfiled returns from registered taxpayers, points directly to systemic access barriers rather than taxpayer unwillingness to comply. This shortfall mirrors the broader FBR sales tax shortfall challenges reported earlier in the fiscal year.

What Taxpayers Should Do Now

If you experienced any of the following during the Tax Year 2025 filing period, your return may be incorrect or incomplete:

• Could not log in to IRIS or recover your password
• Received a lower-than-expected tax credit for donations or VPS contributions
• Submitted a return but are unsure whether it was processed correctly

The best course of action is to have your return reviewed by a qualified tax consultant in Pakistan before the deadline passes.

A professional can:

1. Verify your income tax slab for 2025–26 was applied correctly
2. Recalculate your Section 61 and 63 credits with Section 4AB surcharges included
3. Reconcile any withholding tax discrepancies
4. Resubmit or amend your return through IRIS if needed

Use the Waystax Tax Calculator 2025–26 to estimate your correct liability before meeting with a consultant.

File with Waystax

Waystax, Pakistan’s most trusted tax filing company. They handle your complete income tax return, including correct tax credit calculations, withholding tax reconciliation, and IRIS submission. This is done so you never have to deal with portal errors yourself.