Vehicle Import Duties Just Changed — Here's What the New SROs Actually Do
If you follow car forums or WhatsApp groups, you probably saw headlines this week claiming the government slapped an "additional 30% tax" on imported used cars. The real story, once you read the actual SROs instead of the panic around them, is more interesting — and mostly good news for importers, with one sharp exception.
What FBR actually issued
On July 1, 2026, FBR notified four separate SROs giving effect to the vehicle taxation changes under Finance Act 2026: SRO 1064(I)/2026 and SRO 1065(I)/2026 on regulatory duty, SRO 1063(I)/2026 on additional customs duty, and SRO 1072(I)/2026 introducing a new special excise duty. All four took effect immediately.
Where the "30% tax" confusion came from
SRO 1065(I)/2026 sets regulatory duty on commercial imports of used vehicles at a flat 30%. Several outlets read that number in isolation and reported it as a brand-new additional levy. In fact, it replaces the previous 40% rate that had applied since late 2025 — a 10-point cut, not an increase. A similar reduction applies to the private import schemes (Gift and Transfer of Residence) that most individual importers actually use, with regulatory duty falling from 10% to 8% on smaller vehicles and from 50% to 20% on larger ones.
The one category that got more expensive
- Additional customs duty on vehicles above 1,300cc was trimmed from 6% to 4%
- CKD vehicles up to 1,000cc and imports up to 850cc keep their existing exemptions
- Vehicles between 2,000cc and 3,000cc now attract a new 86% special excise duty
- Vehicles above 3,000cc attract a 92% special excise duty
That last pair is the real headline. Large-engine imports — the segment least relevant to ordinary buyers but popular with a small, high-spending group — just became dramatically costlier, effectively pricing most of that segment out of formal import channels.
Working out what you'd actually owe
Total landed cost on an imported vehicle isn't just one duty — it stacks customs duty, regulatory duty, additional customs duty, sales tax, and in some cases the new special excise duty on top of each other. Our customs duty calculator lets you model the combined effect for your specific vehicle category. Once the car is registered locally, don't forget it also enters the annual token tax system — our advance tax (vehicle) calculator covers what you'll owe there under current filer, late filer, and non-filer rates.
The takeaway
Read the SRO, not the headline. FBR publishes these directly on its SROs page, and the actual notified rate is usually one search away from the viral WhatsApp forward. In this case, the panic was backwards — rates fell for the vehicles most people actually import, while a narrow luxury segment absorbed a genuinely steep increase.
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