Pakistan’s tax authority has notified a special procedure for taxing non-resident people who earn money from social media content aimed at users in the country.
According to the Federal Board of Revenue’s SRO 1642(I)/2026, the rules apply to every non-resident person who earns income from interacting with users in Pakistan through social media platforms, provided they cross the prescribed threshold. That threshold is more than 50,000 users in a tax year, or 12,250 users in a quarter.
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A person’s minimum income from remunerative social media content for a tax year will be total remuneration (A) minus total expenses (B). Expenses are capped at 30 per cent of total revenue.
Total remuneration will be whichever is higher of two figures:
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revenue per mille multiplied by total views divided by 1,000; or
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the actual remuneration received, whether in cash or in kind.
For this purpose, revenue per mille (the revenue per 1,000 views on a YouTube video) is fixed at PKR 195, subject to revision from time to time.
A person who believes their remuneration is lower than the figure produced by the revenue per mille formula must show evidence to the satisfaction of the Commissioner.
Revenue per mille (RPM) is a publisher-side metric that measures the estimated earnings a website owner or content creator receives for every 1,000 views or impressions.
Advance tax and returns
Each person under the procedure must pay advance income tax calculated for one quarter using the same method, payable or recoverable as per section 147 of the Ordinance. Income must be declared in a special part of the income tax return for each tax year.
If the declared income is lower than the amount calculated under the rules, the relevant commissioner may rectify the return and recover the amount due under the Ordinance. Provisions of the Ordinance not specifically covered will apply to such taxpayers, with necessary modifications.
Key definitions
The rules define a “social media platform” as an internet-based service whose primary purpose is to let users interact and share user-generated content, with economic value arising from participation, network effects and the monetisation of engagement or data.
“Remunerative social media content” is content that derives remuneration “in whatsoever form”, including advertising, sponsorship or other monetisation revenue.
Source: Khaleej Times