When are a company's quarterly withholding tax statements due, and what is the penalty for filing late?

A company that deducts or collects tax at source reports it to the Commissioner every quarter under section 165 of the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001. This page reads section 165 and the penalty Table in section 182 as amended to 30 June 2026.

What does the law say?

Section 165(1) requires every person who collects tax under Division II of Part V of Chapter X, or deducts tax under Division III, or collects or deducts under Chapter XII or the Tenth Schedule, to furnish a quarterly statement in the prescribed form. The statement sets out:

• the name, CNIC number, NTN and address of each person from whom tax was collected or to whom payments were made with tax deducted;
• the total payments made to each person from which tax was deducted;
• the total tax collected or deducted for each person; and
• any other particulars prescribed.

The first proviso to section 165(1) says the statement must be filed “even where no withholding tax is collected or deducted during the period”. A second proviso switches section 165 off where the same information has already been furnished by a bank under the separate bank reporting provision.

When are the statements due?

Section 165(2) sets the schedule:

Quarter ending	Due on or before
30 September	20 October
31 December	20 January
31 March	20 April
30 June	20 July

Section 165 also requires more than the four quarterly statements:

• Annual statement. Section 165(7) requires an annual statement for the tax year to be e-filed within thirty days of the end of the tax year.
• Reconciliation statement. Section 165(8) requires a statement reconciling the annual statement with the amounts in the return, audited accounts or financial statements, e-filed by the due date for the return of income.
• Salary statement. Section 165(6) requires an employer deducting tax from salary to file an annual statement in the prescribed form and manner.

What is the penalty for a late statement?

Section 182(1) makes a person who commits an offence in column (2) of its Table liable to the penalty in column (3). Serial No. 1A covers failure to furnish a statement under section 165, 165A, 165B or 165C within the due date. As amended by the Finance Act, 2025, the penalty is:

• Rs. 50,000 if the person had already paid the tax collected or withheld within the due date for payment, and the statement is filed within ninety days from the due date for filing the statement; and
• in all other cases, Rs. 2,500 for each day of default from the due date, with a minimum penalty of Rs. 10,000.

A proviso adds that where it is established that no tax was required to be deducted or collected during the relevant period, the minimum penalty is Rs. 10,000.

Rule 7 of the Tenth Schedule adds a separate risk. Where a withholding agent’s statement does not give complete or accurate particulars of payees not on the active taxpayers’ list, the Commissioner is to start penalty proceedings within thirty days of the statement being filed.

Worked example (illustrative figures)

Faisalabad Weaving Mills Limited files its statement for the quarter ending 30 September 2026 on 5 December 2026. The due date was 20 October 2026. Counting from the due date, the statement is 46 days late (11 days in October, 30 in November and 5 in December).

• Case A: all tax deducted in the quarter was deposited on time. The statement was filed within ninety days of the due date, so the penalty is Rs. 50,000.
• Case B: some deducted tax was deposited late. The daily branch applies: 46 x 2,500 = Rs. 115,000. This is above the Rs. 10,000 minimum.

Now suppose the statement is only 10 days late. Under Case B the penalty is 10 x 2,500 = Rs. 25,000. Under Case A it is Rs. 50,000. As printed, the branch meant for the compliant withholding agent can produce the higher figure for short delays. The Finance Act, 2025 changed that figure from Rs. 5,000 to Rs. 50,000, and the Table does not explain how the two branches interact.

What if the company needs more time?

Section 165(4) lets a person apply in writing to the Commissioner for an extension of time. The Commissioner may grant it by written order if satisfied that there is reasonable cause. Section 165(2B) also lets the Commissioner require a statement for any period by notice.

Common mistakes

• Skipping a nil quarter. The first proviso to section 165(1) requires a statement even when nothing was deducted.
• Using half-yearly dates. The Finance Act, 2020 replaced the half-yearly statements with quarterly ones.
• Forgetting the annual and reconciliation statements. Section 165(7) and (8) sit on top of the quarterly filings.
• Leaving out non-ATL payee details. Rule 7 of the Tenth Schedule links incomplete particulars to penalty proceedings.

What to check in the official text

The section 182 Table is printed as a broken table in the consolidated text. Read S. No. 1A in the official PDF and in the Finance Act, 2025, which substituted “50000” for “5000” in column (3). The Ordinance says the statements are in the “prescribed form”: the form and e-filing rules are in the Income Tax Rules, and the FBR portal steps are outside this corpus.