CPR stands for Computerized Payment Receipt – the official proof that a tax payment has been received by FBR’s treasury. It’s crucial to verify your CPR, particularly if you’ve paid tax through a bank challan or online, to confirm that the tax has indeed been correctly credited against your NTN and not just debited from your account.
What is a CPR
Any payment of tax (income tax, sales tax, withholding tax etc.) made through FBR’s system generates a CPR upon successful processing and crediting of the amount in FBR’s treasury by the bank. The CPR comes with a reference number which can be used to confirm the details of the payment.
Why Should You Verify it?
A payment could be successfully debited from your account, but may not be correctly credited against your NTN due to processing errors by the bank or incorrect CNIC/NTN entry. It is important to verify the CPR online to ensure that the amount is reflected correctly in your FBR tax record before making any tax return or disputing an action taken by FBR.
How to Verify a CPR Online
FBR’s IRIS portal has a CPR verification/inquiry facility where you can enter your CPR number or search by NTN and date range to confirm the payment details and the tax head it has been credited against. It is always best to confirm the details of the payment directly from FBR’s database instead of relying on information provided by the bank from which the tax payment was made.
What to do if you can’t verify your CPR
Contact your bank to confirm the payment was processed successfully and bring the discrepancy to the attention of FBR in case an error was made by the bank while processing your payment. Always keep the receipt of payment provided by the bank as proof of payment.
When will I need my CPR?
You will need to reference a CPR number when making a tax return that includes a payment already made, when responding to a notice sent by FBR regarding a disputed payment and while reconciling advance tax payments with your annual tax liability. It is best to keep a record of CPR numbers throughout the year instead of trying to find them at the time of filing. See our post on filing an income tax return for more information.
