There is a tax on homeopathic and herbal medications.

The treatment of cough, cold, and flu remedies, as well as herbal and homeopathic medications, will now be subject to an 18% sales tax, according to the government. Plant-based vitamins, serums, and lotions will also be subject to the tax.

Homeopathic and herbal medications will be subject to sales tax under the Sales Tax Act’s eighth schedule. Herbal remedies, jams, and saffron will also be subject to an 18% sales tax, according to the paper.

Herbal and homeopathic medicines will probably cost consumers more money as a result of this decision.

Food, medicine, petroleum items, and stationery would all be subject to an 18% General Sales Tax (GST), as advised by the IMF to the Pakistani government.

In their report sent to Islamabad, the IMF specialists advised the Pakistani government to cancel the sales tax exemption.

After visiting Pakistan in December 2023, the IMF team sent a report along with a set of recommendations for the FY2024–2025 budget in February 2024.

Shehbaz Sharif, the prime minister, stated the previous day that the government needed to consider the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) recommendations when preparing the fiscal year budget 2024–25.

PM Shehbaz expressed optimism that the IMF will provide a favorable reaction during his speech during the National Assembly’s budget session. “If the answer originates from