The institutions that decide how business works in Pakistan
Pakistan has no single window. Investment promotion, company registration, tax, foreign exchange, land and sector licences sit with different bodies, at federal and provincial level. This directory explains who decides what, and links each institution to the guides that show how to work with it.
Three layers, not one
The most common entry error is to treat one approval as the whole system. Three layers decide different things, and they run in sequence.
Promotion and coordination
The BOI promotes investment and issues branch and liaison permissions. SIFC convenes departments around priority projects. Neither approves a company, a tax position or a sector licence.
Registration and money
The SECP incorporates the company, the FBR registers it for tax, and the State Bank governs its account, capital and repatriation. Each depends on the one before it.
Place and licence
Provincial boards and departments control land, utilities and provincial tax. Sector regulators license the activity itself. This is usually the longest part of the project.
Seven institutions, one map
Board of Investment
Branch and liaison permissions, investment policy and the federal side of special economic zones.
4 guides →
Special Investment Facilitation Council
The Prime Minister's single-window council for priority projects. It convenes and escalates; it does not license.
4 guides →
Securities and Exchange Commission
Company incorporation, branch registration, capital markets, insurance and corporate disclosure.
4 guides →
Federal Board of Revenue
Income tax, sales tax, withholding and the customs treatment of everything a project imports.
4 guides →
State Bank of Pakistan
Bank accounts, foreign exchange, share registration and the rules that govern repatriation.
4 guides →Provincial investment boards
Land, utilities, provincial tax and zone notification in Punjab, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan.
4 guides →Sector regulators
NEPRA, OGRA, PTA and DRAP: the licences, tariffs and product approvals a regulated project needs.
4 guides → Not sure where to start? Tell us the decision, and we will name the body. A free scoping call covers the institution, the sequence and the documents, before you commit to anything. Book a consultation →The same question, five different desks
| What you need | Who decides | Where to start |
|---|---|---|
| Incorporate a company | SECP, under the Companies Act 2017 | SECP profile and the registration guide |
| Open a branch or liaison office | BOI permission first, then SECP registration | BOI profile and the branch guide |
| Register for tax and clear imports | FBR, plus the provincial revenue authority for services | FBR profile and the tax guide |
| Open a bank account, bring in capital and repatriate profit | State Bank rules, applied by an authorised dealer | SBP profile and the account guide |
| Secure land, utilities and provincial incentives | The provincial government and its investment board | Provincial boards profile |
| Obtain a sector licence | NEPRA, OGRA, PTA or DRAP, according to the activity | Sector regulators profile |
| Escalate a stalled priority project | SIFC, through its secretariat and committees | SIFC profile and the SIFC guide |
Four habits that save months
- Identify the instrument, not the announcement. Ask which law, rule or notification creates the requirement or the incentive. A press release is not an instrument.
- Separate facilitation from approval. A meeting, a letter of support or a memorandum of understanding is not a licence, a tax ruling or a land allotment.
- Sequence the file. Most applications fail because a document from an earlier step is missing, not because the substantive case is weak.
- Keep a written record. The date a file is complete, the officer who confirmed it and the reference number decide how a delay is resolved later.
Read the sequence before you start
Four guides cover the ground most investors need before they approach any institution.
Not sure which institution you need?
Describe the decision you are trying to make, or the approval you are stuck on. We reply within two business days with the body, the sequence and a fixed quote.