The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has ordered every registered textile spinning mill to install video cameras on machinery that processes natural, man-made and blended fibres by 15 November 2026. The new FBR textile mills cameras order widens a monitoring system that until now covered cotton bales, so that loose and opened fibre such as polyester, viscose, wool and acrylic is also counted as it enters production. For the industry behind Pakistan’s largest export, it means more compliance cost and closer scrutiny of how much yarn each mill really makes.
The short version
- Sales Tax General Order No. 30 of 2026, issued on 23 October, takes effect immediately and sets a 15 November deadline.
- Cameras must cover bale openers, blending feeders, blow room lines, waste recycling lines and mixing areas.
- Mills arrange the hardware and software; approved vendors must link the video analytics to the FBR’s Central Control Unit.
- Textile exports were $5.03bn in July–September, up 5.26%, with cotton yarn up 24.5%.
What happened
The order was issued under Section 40C(2) of the Sales Tax Act, 1990, and supplements Sales Tax General Order No. 08 of 2025, which stays in force, Profit reported on 27 October. The systems must detect, count and measure fibre entering production in real time, send the data to the FBR, flag unexpected stoppages and provide analytics for legal action where needed. The order itself, as reported, does not set out penalties.
The step follows a long dispute. In November 2025 the FBR ordered spinning units to monitor cotton bale processing, citing undocumented cotton in the supply chain, TEXtalks reported. In June 2026, ARY News reported that the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) wanted the FBR to bear the cost and to cover ginning units too, while FBR sources said mills would pay and those that did not comply would be treated as non-operational.
Why it matters
Spinning sits at the start of a chain that earned $5.03 billion in exports in the first quarter of FY27, according to Pakistan Bureau of Statistics data reported by Pkrevenue. Cotton yarn exports alone rose 24.5% to $227.1 million. If the FBR can measure fibre input precisely, it can compare a mill’s raw material with its declared sales, which is the point of the system.
Yarn is a small export line, but it feeds the bigger ones above it
Pakistan textile exports by product, July–September 2026 (1QFY27), US$
The timing is hard for mills. The industry already faces higher borrowing costs after the SBP interest rate hike to 12%, and exporters are under pressure to stay competitive as GSP+ access and India’s EU trade deal reshape the European market.
The knock-on effects
First order: installation costs before 15 November
Mills must buy and fit cameras and software across several production stages in under three weeks. Approved vendors will be busy, and mills that run many fibre types face the most work.
Second order: closing the synthetic fibre gap
Until now, polyester, viscose and other non-bale fibre sat outside the cameras. Bringing it in makes it harder to under-declare blended yarn output. FBR sources told ARY News in June that the sector was trying to conceal tax liabilities of about Rs600 billion; ARY reported at the time that both sides were holding firm.
Third order: a level field, or a new cost layer
If the system works, compliant mills could compete on more equal terms with those selling undocumented yarn. If data links fail or flag false stoppages, mills risk disputes with tax offices on top of the energy and finance costs they already carry.
Who could benefit
- Fully documented mills, which may face less undercutting from undeclared output.
- Approved monitoring vendors, which must extend their systems to new machines.
- The FBR, which gains real-time production data for sales tax checks.
Who may face pressure
- Smaller spinning units, for which the hardware cost is a larger share of revenue.
- Blended and synthetic yarn makers, now covered for the first time.
- Downstream weavers and knitters if yarn prices rise to cover compliance costs.
What to watch
- 15 November 2026: installation deadline for spinning units.
- APTMA’s response, and whether it seeks a deadline extension.
- Any FBR statement on enforcement for mills that miss the deadline.
- October textile export data from PBS, due in November.
Sources
- Profit by Pakistan Today, FBR orders textile spinning mills to install surveillance cameras by November 15, 27 October 2026
- Pkrevenue, Pakistan’s textile exports rise by 5.26% in 1QFY27, 15 October 2026
- ARY News, FBR ‘rejects’ APTMA objections, mandates camera installation in textile mills, 25 June 2026
- TEXtalks, Pakistan orders video surveillance in spinning mills to curb undocumented cotton, 24 November 2025
This is analysis, not investment advice. Figures are as of 27 October 2026.
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