Pakistan
Pakistan: 5 company types, its taxes, banking and business environment, and what it is known for.
Forming a company
Company types in Pakistan
The 5 forms a founder can choose here, each with its own figures. Open one for its sources.
What it is known for
Where Pakistan is in the world’s top 10 on a measure anyone can check, the best rank first. Only the top is shown; a low rank is never stated.
- World’s2ndWorld-leading exports Bed, table, bath and kitchen linenBed linen, table linen, toilet linen and kitchen linenUS$4.5 bn · 20.6% of world exports of 212 exporters · 2024 CEPII BACI, January 2026 release See the top 10
- World’s2ndWorld-leading exports Heavy woven cotton fabricsWoven fabrics of cotton, containing 85 % or more by weight of cotton, weighing more than 200 g/m2US$855 m · 14.5% of world exports of 157 exporters · 2024 CEPII BACI, January 2026 release See the top 10
- World’s3rdWorld-leading exports RiceUS$4.1 bn · 10.3% of world exports of 173 exporters · 2024 CEPII BACI, January 2026 release See the top 10
A rank is among everything the source reports for that year, so it moves when the source adds or drops economies. Exports include goods passing through for re-export. Nothing here is a recommendation.
Doing business here
Business accounts
Providers whose own published list of countries names Pakistan. A listing means a company formed here may apply, not that it will be accepted.
Not in our records No provider's country list has been read for Pakistan.
EU listings
Two lists a bank checks when it opens an account for a company or its owner.
- EU high-risk third countries (AML)
- Not listed
- EU non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes
- Not listedOfficial EUR-Lex, 52026XG01465, Annex I as of 2026-02-17
Official sites
The authorities’ own sites for Pakistan: where to register, file and check.
Blocs and agreements
The trade arrangements Pakistan belongs to, as each arrangement’s own texts state them: since when, and what each covers. What a membership means for a business is for you to judge.
- South Asian Free Trade Area
- Free trade area · since 1 January 2006
Covers goods.
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Member States comprising the People's Republic of Bangladesh, the Kingdom of Bhutan, the Republic of India, the Republic of Maldives, the Kingdom of Nepal, the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka
Regional and customs arrangements only, 36 of them; bilateral trade agreements are not yet in our records.
Tax
Company tax
Tax, and what the company owes the registry each year.
- Corporate income tax
- 29%
- Distributions
- Not in our records
- Audit
- Not in our records
- Small-company relief
- Not in our records
- Annual obligations
- Not in our records
- Annual registry fee
- Not in our records
VAT
The tax on what the company sells in Pakistan, and when it must register, as the tax authority states it.
- Standard rate
- Not in our recordsThe tax authority’s pages have not been read for Pakistan.
Tax calendar
When the main returns and payments fall due in Pakistan, tax year tax year 2026 (1 July 2025 to 30 June 2026), as the tax authority states it.
- Corporate tax return
- 31 December · each year
a company files its income tax return on or before 31 December following the end of the tax year (a company with a special tax year files by 30 September). The rule takes 31 December. The page states no weekend shift, so the shift is unstated.
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Individual & Association of Person (AOP) On or before 30th September Company On or before 31st December
- Corporate tax, final payment
- 31 December · each year
under section 137 of the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001 the tax payable for a tax year is due on the due date for furnishing the return of income, so a company pays the balance on or before 31 December after crediting the quarterly advance tax. The rule takes 31 December. The page states no weekend shift, so the shift is unstated.
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Individual & Association of Person (AOP) On or before 30th September Company On or before 31st December
- Corporate tax, instalments
- 15 October · each quarter
a company pays advance tax in four quarterly instalments on 15 October (September quarter), 15 January (December quarter), 15 April (March quarter) and 15 June (June quarter). The record takes the first instalment, 15 October. Each instalment is broadly one quarter of the tax assessed for the latest tax year, less tax already paid. The page states no weekend shift, so the shift is unstated.
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September 15 th October December 15 th January March 15 th April June 15 th June
- Personal income-tax return
- 30 September · each year
an individual or AOP files the income tax return on or before 30 September following the end of the tax year. The rule takes 30 September. For tax year 2026 the FBR extended this date to 15 October 2026 by notification under section 214A of the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001, in view of requests from trade bodies and tax bars; the statutory date remains 30 September. The page states no weekend shift, so the shift is unstated.
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Individual & Association of Person (AOP) On or before 30th September Company On or before 31st December
- Personal income tax, final payment
- 30 September · each year
under section 137 the tax payable for a tax year is due on the due date for furnishing the return, so an individual or AOP pays the balance on or before 30 September after crediting the quarterly advance tax and the tax deducted at source. The rule takes 30 September (extended to 15 October 2026 for tax year 2026). The page states no weekend shift, so the shift is unstated.
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Individual & Association of Person (AOP) On or before 30th September Company On or before 31st December
- Personal income tax, instalments
- 15 September · each quarter
an individual or AOP pays advance tax in four quarterly instalments on 15 September (September quarter), 15 December (December quarter), 15 March (March quarter) and 15 June (June quarter). The record takes the first instalment, 15 September. Each instalment is a quarter of the tax assessed for the latest tax year, less tax already paid. The page states no weekend shift, so the shift is unstated.
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September 15 th September December 15 th December March 15 th March June 15 th June
- VAT return
- Day 18 of the following month · each month
a registered person files the monthly return Annexure C on the 10th, pays on the 15th and e-files the return by the 18th day of the month following the period in which the supplies were made. The record takes the e-filed return deadline, the 18th; the payment deadline is the 15th. Certain categories (for example, CNG stations) file quarterly, and a manufacturer files an annual return by 30 September. The page states no weekend shift, so the shift is unstated.
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e-file return by the 18th day of the month following the period in which the supplies were made
- Payroll withholding
- 7 days after the end of the period
an employer deducts income tax from salaries and pays it to the Commissioner by credit to the Federal Government; where the employer is not a Federal or Provincial Government, the tax is paid by remittance to the Government Treasury or deposit in an authorised branch of the State Bank of Pakistan or the National Bank of Pakistan within seven days from the end of each week ending on every Sunday. The record therefore takes a weekly period of seven days; the frequency field is null because the schema offers no weekly value. The employer also files a withholding statement under section 165, due on the 20th day of the month following each quarter. The page states no weekend shift, so the shift is unstated.
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seven days from the end of each week ending on every sunday
Running the company
Running a company here
Not in our records The authorities’ pages on running a company have not been read for Pakistan yet.
Economy and trade
What it exports
Goods Pakistan exported, by product, as a share of its goods exports each year. Exports include goods passing through for re-export. A share describes Pakistan’s own trade; it does not compare places.
| Product (HS heading) | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | Value, 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bed linen, table linen, toilet linen and kitchen linen HS 6302 | 11.6% | 11.4% | 12.2% | US$4.5 bn |
| Rice HS 1006 | 8.2% | 7.6% | 11.0% | US$4.1 bn |
| Men's or boys' suits, ensembles, jackets, blazers, trousers, bib and brace overalls, breeches and shorts (other than swimwear) HS 6203 | 6.7% | 6.4% | 6.8% | US$2.5 bn |
| Women's or girls' suits, ensembles, jackets, blazers, dresses, skirts, divided skirts, trousers, bib and brace overalls, breeches and shorts (other than swimwear) HS 6204 | 3.9% | 3.7% | 4.4% | US$1.7 bn |
| Jerseys, pullovers, cardigans, waistcoats and similar articles, knitted or crocheted HS 6110 | 4.5% | 4.1% | 4.4% | US$1.6 bn |
| Woven fabrics of cotton, containing 85 % or more by weight of cotton, weighing more than 200 g/m2 HS 5209 | 2.5% | 2.3% | 2.3% | US$855 m |
| Pantyhose, tights, stockings, socks and other hosiery, including graduated compression hosiery (for example, stockings for varicose veins) and footwear without applied soles, knitted or crocheted HS 6115 | 1.9% | 1.9% | 2.0% | US$752 m |
| T-shirts, singlets and other vests, knitted or crocheted HS 6109 | 1.9% | 1.9% | 2.0% | US$731 m |
| Cotton yarn (other than sewing thread), containing 85 % or more by weight of cotton, not put up for retail sale HS 5205 | 2.6% | 2.8% | 1.9% | US$716 m |
| Refined copper and copper alloys, unwrought HS 7403 | 2.0% | 2.0% | 1.9% | US$690 m |
Total goods exports, 2024: US$37.1 bn. The ten largest headings are shown.