Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has issued Sales Tax General Order (STGO) 27 of 2026 dated October 7, 2026, directing the electronic monitoring of production through video surveillance in five sectors. The order was issued in exercise of the powers conferred under Section 40C(2) of the Sales Tax Act, 1990, read with Rules 150ZQR, 150ZQT, 150ZQU and 150ZQZE of Chapter XIV-BA of the Sales Tax Rules, 2006, and the monitoring takes effect from the date of the order. The covered sectors are packaged tea, household electronics, paper and paperboard, edible oil and ghee, and leather. The full text of the order is available as a PDF on the FBR website, where manufacturers can review the technical annexes that accompany the directive.
Within the household electronics sector, the order names refrigerators, deep freezers, washing machines, televisions and air conditioners as the goods that will be monitored. In the leather sector, the order covers both tanneries and manufacturers of synthetic leather. All registered persons who manufacture the specified goods, whether on their own account or as toll manufacturers, must install a video surveillance system at each production line by October 15, 2026. This gives manufacturers a short period of days to complete the installation after the order was issued, and it applies to every production line rather than only to one location in a factory.
The order describes the system in detail. It must comprise Internet Protocol (IP) cameras and a Network Video Recorder (NVR), together with allied storage, power backup and network equipment, and it must conform to Annex-B and cover the points specified in Annex-A of the order. The cameras must remain fixed and must not be moved, obstructed or switched off, and all recordings must be retained for not less than two months. Under Rule 150ZQU, the system can be purchased only from vendors authorized by the Board under Chapter XIV-BA of the Rules, which are Obsidian Technologies, Tollink Pakistan (Pvt.) Ltd., ISSM Labelling Solutions (Private) Limited and Authentik. These vendors will supply, install, test and maintain the system for manufacturers.
The order also warns of consequences for non compliance. Failure to comply with the directions, or any obstruction or tampering with the system, may result in penal action under the Sales Tax Act, 1990 and the Rules made under it. The requirement that cameras stay in place and recordings stay available for two months is intended to keep a continuous record of production at each line, which the Board can use to monitor output in the five sectors. Manufacturers in packaged tea, household electronics, paper and paperboard, edible oil and ghee, and leather now need to contact an authorized vendor and complete the installation before the deadline of October 15, 2026.
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