How to File the Sindh Sales Tax Return (SST-03) With SRB: Pay by the 15th, File by the 18th

Short answer: Every business registered with the Sindh Revenue Board (SRB) files a monthly return in Form SST-03 at e.srb.gos.pk. Upload your sales invoices in Annex-C by the 10th, pay the tax by the 15th, and submit the return within three days of that, so by the 18th of the month after the tax period. A late return costs Rs 100 for each day.

The SST-03 is the Sindh sales tax on services return. It covers services such as restaurants, advertising, IT, construction and consultancy that are taxed in Sindh at a standard rate of 15 per cent. We read the Sindh Sales Tax on Services Rules, 2011 and the Act, both as amended up to 1 July 2026, on SRB's website. The dates and steps below come from those texts.

SST-03 is due by the 18th, with tax paid by the 15th

Under rule 14, sales tax for a month is due by the 15th of the next month. The return for that month must be e-filed within three days of the due date, which makes the 18th. Annex-C, your list of sales invoices, goes in earlier, by the 10th.

For the October 2026 tax period that means three dates. Submit Annex-C by 10 November 2026. Pay the tax by 15 November 2026, which is a Sunday, so pay on the Friday before if your bank needs a working day. File the SST-03 by 18 November 2026.

The 10th matters more than it looks. Your Annex-C feeds straight into your buyers' purchase annex. If you file it late, your registered customers cannot see your invoices when they prepare their own returns.

File the SST-03 at e.srb.gos.pk in nine steps

Log in to e.srb.gos.pk with your SRB user ID and password, open the sales tax on services return, fill the annexes, verify with your PIN, generate the payment challan, pay it, enter the payment receipt number, and submit. Rule 13 sets out each step in this order.

1. Log in at e.srb.gos.pk with the user ID and password you got when you enrolled.
2. From the Declaration menu, choose the Sales Tax on Services return.
3. Pick the tax period from the list and open the monthly return.
4. Fill Annex-C with your sales invoices and Annex-A with your purchase invoices. Each annex has an upload option for data files.
5. Check the main return. Its totals fill in automatically from the annexes, and the payable tax shows at the end.
6. Press Verify and enter your PIN code.
7. Press the e-payment button. This makes challan SST-04 with a PSID, the payment number.
8. Pay the PSID through your bank. The bank confirms it and you get a computerised payment receipt (CPR).
9. Enter the CPR ID on the return, press Submit, and print the acknowledgement.

Keep the acknowledgement number. Rule 13 says you must quote it in all later letters to SRB. Save the submitted return as a PDF too, because the rules make you produce it with your records if an officer asks.

Large input claims need scanned invoices

If the input tax you claim on goods and services is more than 20 per cent of your output tax, rule 16 requires you to attach scanned copies of the invoices. Input tax is the sales tax you paid on what you bought. Output tax is what you charged your customers.

Say you charged Rs 150,000 in Sindh sales tax in a month. If you claim more than Rs 30,000 of input tax against it, you need the scans. Many service firms never reach that level, but a business that buys a lot of taxed inputs, like a caterer or an advertising agency, often does.

Input on services taxed in another province is not creditable in Sindh, and rule 13A asks you to enter it by hand in Annex-A as inadmissible. If you also pay Punjab sales tax, the Punjab sales tax on services return is a separate filing on PRA's portal.

Late returns cost Rs 100 a day plus default surcharge

A late SST-03 carries a penalty of Rs 100 for each day past the due date, under the penalty table in section 43 of the Sindh Act, as changed by the Sindh Finance Act, 2025. Late tax also carries default surcharge at the inter-bank rate plus 3 per cent a year.

Default surcharge runs from the day after the due date to the day before you pay. If the late payment comes from tax fraud, the rate jumps to 2 per cent a month. So file even when you cannot pay in full, because the daily penalty is about the return, while the surcharge is about the money.

Missing four returns in a row has a bigger cost. Under rule 9A you become a non-active taxpayer, drop off SRB's active list, and lose refunds and exemptions. Your customers also lose the input tax on your invoices. Our steps to restore a suspended or non-active SRB registration cover the way back.

File even when you owed no tax that month

Section 30 of the Act requires every registered person to file a true and correct return by the due date. There is no exception for a month with no sales, so a nil return is still a return. Skipping it counts towards the four missed periods.

You can file yourself or through an e-intermediary appointed under rule 19. If you are new to SRB and already registered with FBR, SRB's help page points you to a swift enrolment route rather than a fresh registration. The SRB taxpayer search shows whether your registration is active.

For a problem the portal will not fix, SRB's call centre is on UAN 021-111-778-000 and the head office in Shaheen Complex, Karachi, is on 021-99217800, Monday to Friday, 9 am to 5 pm.

Common questions

What is the last date for the Sindh sales tax return?

The 18th of the month after the tax period. Tax is due by the 15th and the return within three days of it, under rule 14.

When is Annex-C due?

By the 10th of the month in which the return is due, under rule 13A.

What is the penalty for a late SST-03?

Rs 100 for each day of default after the due date. Unpaid tax also carries default surcharge at the inter-bank rate plus 3 per cent a year.

Do I file if I had no sales?

Yes. Section 30 requires every registered person to file. Four missed returns in a row make you a non-active taxpayer.

Can I file an SST-03 after six months?

Only with the approval of the SRB Commissioner who has jurisdiction. The limit went from four months to six from 1 July 2026.

What is the standard rate of Sindh sales tax on services?

15 per cent under section 8 of the Act, unless the Second Schedule sets a different rate for the service.

How we verified this

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

Last checked 20 October 2026. We read rules 9A, 12, 13, 13A, 14 and 16 of the Sindh Sales Tax on Services Rules, 2011 (amended up to 1 July 2026) and sections 8, 30, 43 and 44 of the Sindh Sales Tax on Services Act, 2011 (amended up to 1 July 2026), both on SRB's site, and the call centre number on SRB's FAQ page. The e.srb.gos.pk portal did not load for us on 20 October 2026, so the steps follow the rules rather than the live screens, and labels may differ slightly. SRB's own copies carry the note "E&OE", meaning errors and omissions excepted.