Pakistan’s Federal Board of Revenue demanded immediate action Thursday from a wide array of businesses. Hotels, marriage halls, beauty parlors, private clinics and educational institutions must integrate their point-of-sale machines with the FBR’s central system by February 26, according to a new notification.

The order targets operators already using POS devices. It requires hotels, guest houses, marriage halls, clubs, inter-city transport services, courier and cargo companies, beauty parlors, slimming centers, massage centers, hair transplant clinics, dental clinics and other private medical facilities to register without delay, the FBR stated.

Laboratories, veterinary clinics, diagnostic centers, X-ray facilities, private hospitals, health clubs, swimming pools, fitness clubs, gyms and even chartered accountant firms fall under the mandate. Manufacturers, low-volume retailers, wholesalers and importers must comply as well.

Educational outfits charging monthly fees—schools, colleges, training centers and universities—face the same seven-day deadline. The FBR notification lists these explicitly to close loopholes in the tax net.

Tax registration under Section 33 of the law binds all such businesses, authorities emphasized. Beyond POS linkage, companies must hand over one month’s CCTV footage upon request under Section 33B.

Officials issued stark warnings. Any negligence or delay will draw enforcement action, the FBR said. This push aims to drag informal sectors into Pakistan’s formal tax framework amid ongoing revenue shortfalls.

The directive hit businesses nationwide, from Karachi’s busy clinics to Lahore’s marriage halls and Islamabad’s gyms. Industry groups had no immediate comment, but owners scrambled to meet the cutoff.

FBR teams plan spot checks starting next week. Past drives yielded mixed results, with thousands of POS units integrated but evasion persistent in cash-heavy trades like beauty services and private healthcare.

Government data shows Pakistan’s tax-to-GDP ratio lags at around 10%, far below regional peers. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s administration views full POS connectivity as key to broadening the base without rate hikes.

Businesses integrating now must submit sales data in real time. The system flags discrepancies automatically, feeding audit teams with transaction trails.

One Karachi hotel manager, speaking anonymously, called the timeline “impossible.” Engineers need days just to configure hardware, he said. FBR helplines lit up Thursday with queries from flustered owners.

Lawmakers backed the move in recent sessions. Opposition critics decried it as harassment of small players, but treasury benches pointed to evasion costing billions in lost revenue annually.

Similar orders rolled out last year for restaurants and retailers. Compliance climbed to 70% in urban centers, per FBR stats, though rural holdouts persist.

With the clock ticking, Pakistan’s business landscape braces for upheaval. The seven-day fuse highlights Islamabad’s resolve to overhaul a leaky tax regime.