FBR ATL Property Restriction: Late Filers, the Six-Month Undertaking and Draft Form ATL-U (2026)

In short

The law: section 182A(3) of the Income Tax Ordinance, added by the Finance Act 2026, says the surcharge conditions do not apply to an individual who gives the Commissioner an undertaking not to "purchase, acquire, or otherwise obtain ownership or beneficial interest in any property" for six months, "in such form as may be prescribed". The draft: S.R.O. 1691(I)/2026 (6 October 2026) would add sub-rules (2B) to (2D) to rule 81B and a Form ATL-U, filed through IRIS. Status: a draft. FBR's Income Tax SROs list, checked on 3 November 2026, showed no final rule 81B or Form ATL-U notification after 6 October. The choice in the law: a late-filing individual pays the Rs25,000 surcharge, or gives the undertaking before the Commissioner in the prescribed form, which the draft would make Form ATL-U. On a breach: under the draft, where information indicates a property acquisition during the six months, the individual "shall be provided an electronic opportunity of being heard"; if the breach is established, the benefit is withdrawn from the date of the breach.

The FBR ATL property restriction that people are searching for is not a ban on late filers buying property. Since the Finance Act 2026, the law says an individual who files a return late does not have to pay the Rs25,000 surcharge for getting onto the Active Taxpayers List (ATL) if they give an undertaking "before the Commissioner", "in such form as may be prescribed", not to purchase, acquire or otherwise obtain ownership or beneficial interest in any property for six months. On 6 October 2026, FBR published draft rules, S.R.O. 1691(I)/2026, that would set out how that undertaking is given: a new Form ATL-U filed through IRIS. On 3 November 2026 we could not find a final notification of those rules in FBR's Income Tax SROs list.

What the law already says: section 182A

Section 182A deals with a return not filed by the due date. Under subsection (1), a person who files late is not included in the ATL for that year. The proviso lets them in "on filing return after the due date, if the person pays surcharge", which FBR's copy of the Ordinance (amended up to 30 June 2026) sets at Rs100,000 for a company, Rs50,000 for an association of persons and Rs25,000 for an individual.

The Finance Act 2026 also added subsection (3), which reads:

"The conditions of payment of surcharge mentioned in sub-section (1), shall not apply to an individual who furnishes an undertaking before the Commissioner by declaring that he shall not purchase, acquire, or otherwise obtain ownership or beneficial interest in any property for a period of six months commencing from the date of furnishing such undertaking in such form as may be prescribed."

The Finance Act 2026 was published in the Gazette on 26 June 2026 and, unless it says otherwise, came into force on 1 July 2026. From the text:

• It applies to an individual only, not a company or an association of persons.
• The words are "any property", and they cover ownership and "beneficial interest", not only purchase.
• The form is "such form as may be prescribed". That form is what the October draft would supply.

What draft S.R.O. 1691(I)/2026 would add

FBR published the draft on 6 October 2026 under section 237 of the Ordinance, "read with sub-section (3) of section 182A". It asks for objections or suggestions "within seven days of publication of this Notification in the official Gazette". It proposes three new sub-rules in rule 81B of the Income Tax Rules, 2002:

1. Sub-rule (2B): where an individual files the return for the latest tax year after the due date or extended due date and furnishes, through IRIS, an undertaking in Form ATL-U, "his name shall be included in the Active Taxpayers' List without payment of the surcharge".
2. Sub-rule (2C): the six months start "on the date shown on the electronic acknowledgement issued by IRIS on successful furnishing of Form ATL-U".
3. Sub-rule (2D): FBR "may verify compliance with the undertaking from information available under the Ordinance or received from any authority, agency, registry, financial institution or other lawful source". Where information indicates that the individual has, during the six months, "purchased, acquired or otherwise obtained ownership or beneficial interest in any property", the individual "shall be provided an electronic opportunity of being heard". If the breach is established, the benefit "shall stand withdrawn from the date of breach" and the person's ATL status is then governed by sub-rule (2A).

The draft also adds Form ATL-U as Part XV of the First Schedule: name, CNIC or NTN, tax year, return filing date, IRIS acknowledgement number and the date of the undertaking. Its declaration says the surcharge benefit "is conditional upon compliance with this undertaking".

ProPakistani reported the draft on 6 October 2026.

Is it final? What we found on 3 November 2026

FBR lists its Income Tax SROs, drafts and final rules alike, on fbr.gov.pk. We read that list in a browser on 3 November 2026:

• The draft is there as 1691(I)/2026, dated 6 October 2026, titled "Draft rules for consideration of amendment proposed in rule 81B and first schedule of the Income Tax Rules, 2002".
• The newest Income Tax entry was S.R.O. 1912(I)/2026 of 27 October 2026, a draft on rule 73.
• Between 6 October and 27 October there was no final notification amending rule 81B or adding Form ATL-U.

So the six-month undertaking is in the Ordinance, but the procedure FBR proposed for it (Form ATL-U through IRIS) was still a draft on that date. We could not confirm how FBR is handling section 182A(3) undertakings until a form is notified. The final rules may also differ from the draft.

How this is different from section 114C

Section 114C, added by the Finance Act 2025, is a separate rule. It says an authority that registers, records or attests a transfer of immovable property shall not process an application by an "ineligible person" above the Fifteenth Schedule threshold, a fair market value "exceeding one hundred million rupees". Section 114C(5) says these restrictions "shall come into force on such date as the Federal Government may, by notification in official Gazette, appoint"; we have not confirmed whether that date has been notified. Section 114C limits what an authority may register; section 182A(3) is an undertaking a late filer chooses to give.

What a buyer or seller can check

The undertaking is about ATL status, and ATL status is what the withholding taxes on a sale or purchase turn on. FBR's withholding rate card (updated up to 30 June 2026) lists, for example, 1.25% under section 236K for a buyer on the ATL, and 10.5% to 18.5% for a buyer who is not, depending on the property's fair market value. For a seller, section 236C is 2.75% on the ATL and 11.5% off it. Rates as of June 2026.

• The undertaking date: under the draft, the six months run from the date on the IRIS acknowledgement for Form ATL-U, so that date is what matters for a purchase in that window.
• Final rules: the draft could change. FBR's Income Tax SROs list is where a final rule 81B notification would appear.
• The tax itself: our transfer tax calculator works out 236K and 236C, and FBR value vs DC value explains which valuation each tax uses.

This is a summary of the published texts, not tax advice.

Frequently asked questions

What is the FBR ATL property restriction?

It is the undertaking in section 182A(3) of the Income Tax Ordinance. Under it, the surcharge conditions do not apply to an individual who files late and gives an undertaking before the Commissioner, "in such form as may be prescribed", not to "purchase, acquire, or otherwise obtain ownership or beneficial interest in any property" for six months.

Is the FBR ATL property restriction proposal final?

The undertaking has been in the Ordinance since the Finance Act 2026. The rules for giving it through IRIS (Form ATL-U) were published as draft S.R.O. 1691(I)/2026 on 6 October 2026. On 3 November 2026 we found no final notification in FBR's Income Tax SROs list.

Late filer property kharid sakta hai? Is there a late filer property purchase ban?

Neither section 182A(3) nor the draft rules ban it. A late-filing individual who pays the Rs25,000 surcharge gives no undertaking. One who gives the section 182A(3) undertaking declares they will not purchase, acquire or otherwise obtain ownership or beneficial interest in any property for six months.

Non filer property purchase 2026: what tax applies?

FBR's rate card (updated up to 30 June 2026) lists 10.5% to 18.5% under section 236K for a buyer not on the ATL, depending on the property's fair market value, against 1.25% for one on it. The transfer tax calculator works it out for a given value.

Sources

1. FBR: S.R.O. 1691(I)/2026, draft amendments to rule 81B and the First Schedule of the Income Tax Rules, 2002 (6 October 2026) download1.fbr.gov.pk
2. FBR: Income Tax SROs list (checked in a browser on 3 November 2026) fbr.gov.pk
3. FBR: Income Tax Ordinance, 2001, amended up to 30 June 2026 (sections 114C, 182A and the Fifteenth Schedule) download1.fbr.gov.pk
4. FBR: Finance Act 2026 (Gazette of Pakistan, 26 June 2026), section 182A amendments download1.fbr.gov.pk
5. FBR: Withholding Income Tax Rate Card, updated up to 30 June 2026 as per Finance Act 2026 download1.fbr.gov.pk
6. FBR: Active Taxpayers List (Income Tax) fbr.gov.pk
7. ProPakistani: FBR Suggests New Way for Late Filers to Join ATL Without Fine (6 October 2026) propakistani.pk