FBR Adds 3 Steel Units to the Rs 5 a Unit Sales Tax List, STGO 28 of 2026

The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has added three steel units to the list that pays sales tax at Rs 5 per unit of electricity instead of Rs 30. Sales Tax General Order (STGO) No. 28 of 2026, dated 19 October 2026, names K.B Enterprises, G.M.B Steel Furnace and Rajput Steel Industry as serial numbers 37, 38 and 39, with immediate effect.

We read the two-page order on FBR's website on 20 October 2026. It amends STGO 16 of 2026, dated 6 August 2026. That is the list which tells power companies which steel melters get the lower sales tax rate on their bills. For a melter that uses one million units of electricity a month, the gap between Rs 30 and Rs 5 is Rs 25 million of sales tax every month.

FBR added serial numbers 37, 38 and 39 to the Rs 5 list

STGO 28 of 2026 adds three taxpayers after serial number 36 of the August list. Each is named with its national tax number (NTN). The order applies to all their electricity connections at once, and FBR copied it to every power distribution company.

The order does not print the electricity reference numbers. It says "Respective No" in that column and "Respective DISCO" in the power company column. So each distribution company (DISCO) has to match the name and NTN to its own meters. The order does not say where the three units are, and we did not guess.

The order was signed by FBR's Second Secretary (ST-L&P) under the third proviso to section 6(2) of the Sales Tax Act, 1990. Copies went to FBR's inland revenue members, its IT directorate, PRAL and "All DISCOs for application of specified rates".

The Rs 5 rate is for melters that mostly use imported or EFS scrap

Under S.R.O. 1245(I)/2026, a melter using local scrap pays Rs 30 a unit. The Rs 5 rate is for melters whose scrap is more than 70 per cent imported, or more than 70 per cent bought from an Export Facilitation Scheme (EFS) licensee. Captive power users pay Rs 35.

A proviso in the same notification adds a second test for the Rs 5 rate. The melter must be integrated with FBR's computerised system for real-time reporting of its sales. The scrap test first looked back twelve months. From 1 October 2026 it looks back six months, as we reported when FBR cut the scrap test to six months.

Size decides the category. A unit using 500,000 units or more a month on one meter counts as a melter or composite unit. Below that, it is a re-roller. The wider rules are in our explainer on sales tax on steel melters and re-rollers per unit of electricity.

A listed melter pays Rs 25 less on every unit of electricity

The difference is simple to work out. At Rs 30 a unit, one million units cost Rs 30 million in sales tax. At Rs 5, the same units cost Rs 5 million. The notification lets melters adjust this tax against their output sales tax, so much of the gap is cash flow.

These are our own sums from the two rates. Clause (b) of S.R.O. 1245 lets the per-unit tax be adjusted against output tax, so the final cost depends on each unit's own sales. Still, a month's bill is paid first. And if a melter does not pay by the due date on the bill, the notification tells the DISCO to disconnect it.

A steel unit gets on the list through FBR's own check

FBR says it judged the three units on the S.R.O. 1245 criteria: scrap used, electricity units used and scrap imported under the named customs codes. The Board can revise the list. A Commissioner Inland Revenue can recommend changes, and field offices can check any unit's eligibility.

1. Check that imported or EFS scrap is over 70 per cent of your raw material for the review period, now six months.
2. Keep the import papers for scrap under PCT headings 7204.3000, 7204.4100, 7204.4990 and 7204.4940.
3. Make sure your sales report to FBR's computerised system in real time, because the proviso requires it.
4. File your electricity units correctly, including Annex-K in the sales tax return when the DISCO data is missing.
5. Ask your Commissioner Inland Revenue to examine your case, since the order lets the Commissioner recommend additions.
6. Watch for the next STGO, because the list is to be reviewed every three months.

The order also says hardship cases go to the concerned Commissioner. That is the first door for a unit that thinks it was left out, or wrongly dropped.

Three things about this order we could not confirm

The order names the units but not their cities, their power companies or their meter numbers. We found no FBR press release about it. And we did not read every order between 6 August and 19 October, so other changes to the list may exist besides these three names.

The wording "after serial number 36" tells us the list had at least 36 names before this order. It now runs to at least 39. If you buy billets from one of these units, nothing changes for you directly. The rate sits on the melter's electricity bill.

Common questions

Which steel units did FBR add on 19 October 2026?

K.B Enterprises (NTN 8279122), G.M.B Steel Furnace (NTN 4220416) and Rajput Steel Industry (NTN 0962986), as serial numbers 37 to 39 of the list under STGO 16 of 2026.

From when do the three units pay Rs 5 a unit?

The order says it applies to all their electricity connections "with immediate effect". It is dated 19 October 2026. How fast each DISCO changes the bill is not stated.

What do other melters pay?

Rs 30 a unit for melters using local scrap and Rs 35 for units on captive power, under S.R.O. 1245(I)/2026. Only melters that qualify and appear on the list pay Rs 5.

Is the per-unit tax a final cost?

Not fully. Clause (b) of S.R.O. 1245 lets melters adjust the tax paid on electricity units against their output sales tax.

Can a unit be removed from the list?

Yes. The order says the Board or field offices may examine any unit for inclusion or exclusion, and the list is reviewed every three months.

Where do I complain if my unit was left out?

The order says hardship cases go to the concerned Commissioner Inland Revenue for consideration.

How we verified this

What we checked, where we read it, and what we could not confirm.

Last checked on 20 October 2026. We read Sales Tax General Order No. 28 of 2026, C.No. 1(202) ST-L&P/2026/118601-R dated 19 October 2026, from the FBR download page, and S.R.O. 1245(I)/2026 for the rates, the 500,000 unit test, adjustment and disconnection. The monthly sums are ours. We could not confirm the units' locations, their DISCOs, the date each bill will change, or whether other names were added between August and October.