Government Denies Proposal to Increase Petrol Prices for Cash Payments

There is no proposal under consideration to implement different petroleum prices for various consumer categories once a uniform price has been set by the federal government.

According to sources speaking to ProPakistani, the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) is not currently evaluating any specific plan to impose varying prices of petroleum products (POL) based on payment methods. “As of now, no such proposal is included in the Finance Bill 2025-26,” senior government officials confirmed.

Officials clarified that the federal government sets a single, uniform price for petroleum products—such as petrol—for all consumers, regardless of how they pay. It is not legally permissible to charge different prices to consumers based on whether they use debit/credit cards or pay in cash.

Charging one price to card users and a higher price to cash payers is not legally viable because the federal government has mandated a standard price for petroleum products across the board.

When questioned about differential tax practices—such as varying sales tax rates in Islamabad-based restaurants or withholding tax on bank cash withdrawals—officials emphasized that these scenarios are not comparable. Petroleum prices are uniformly fixed by the federal government and cannot vary by payment method.