The Pakistan Remittance Initiative is a joint effort of the State Bank of Pakistan, the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis, launched in 2009 to bring remittances into formal channels. Its government funded fee scheme ended on 1 July 2026, but banks must still keep qualifying home remittances of USD 200 or more free for sender and receiver.
Which transfers are free of charges now?
The State Bank's EPD Circular Letter No. 12 of 2026 ended the government's scheme for reimbursing telegraphic transfer charges from 1 July 2026. In the same letter it told banks to "continue to implement the scheme at their end while preserving its key features", and to make sure that home remittances meeting the existing criteria remain free of cost for senders and beneficiaries.
Those criteria come from the 2025 circular and its Appendix A:
- the transfer is at least USD 200, or the same amount in another currency;
- neither the person sending nor the person receiving is charged any fee, commission or charge at any stage, by the bank in Pakistan or its partner abroad;
- several transfers from the same sender to the same person on the same day count as one;
- only five free transfers a month count from one sender to the same person through the same overseas partner.
At the mid market rates of 8 November 2026, USD 200 was about 149.49 GBP, 179.16 EUR, 734 AED, 750 SAR, 728 QAR, 62.10 KWD, 281.87 CAD, 290.81 AUD, or PKR 55,316.
The circulars deal with fees and charges. They say nothing about the exchange rate a provider uses, so compare the rupees that arrive with the mid market value as usual.
How did the scheme change in 2024, 2025 and 2026?
- October 2024 (EPD Circular Letter No. 09 of 2024): banks were paid SAR 20 for each eligible home remittance of USD 100 and above, with a smaller variable payment tied to growth.
- July 2025 (EPD Circular Letter No. 04 of 2025): the minimum rose to USD 200, the payment became a flat SAR 20 per transaction, and exchange companies were brought into the scheme. Two other incentive schemes, one for exchange companies and one for marketing home remittances, were discontinued from the same day (Circular Letters No. 05 and 06 of 2025).
- July 2026 (EPD Circular Letter No. 12 of 2026): the scheme ended as a government scheme, and banks were told to keep qualifying transfers free of cost.
What happened to Sohni Dharti points?
The Sohni Dharti Remittance Program was a points scheme: people who sent money through formal channels earned points they could spend on public services such as passport and NADRA fees. The State Bank's pages for it now redirect to its home remittance section, and the terms of the new Pasban scheme, published by 1LINK, say the programme "has been discontinued".
This site could not find an official notice giving the end date or how long existing points can be spent. If you hold points, ask your bank or the PRI helpline before assuming they are gone.
What is the Pasban reward scheme?
A prize draw announced by the State Bank on 25 September 2026. It is run under the Pakistan Banks' Association and paid for entirely by the banks, with Rs 16 billion of prizes a year. A person in Pakistan qualifies by receiving home remittances worth USD 100 or more each month, for three months in a row within a quarter, into a bank account. Each USD 100 earns one entry. Each quarter there are 2,521 prizes worth Rs 4 billion in all, split by the region the money comes from: half for the Gulf states, 15% each for the UK and Europe, 10% for North America and 10% for the rest.
The first draw is due on 15 January 2027 and covers October to December 2026. Taking part is free; results are to be posted by 1LINK.
Who runs PRI, and how do you reach it?
The State Bank's home remittance page describes PRI as launched in 2009 by the Ministry of Finance, the State Bank and the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis. The separate PRI website did not load on 18 October 2026, so everything here comes from the State Bank. The helpline it lists is +92 21 111 727 774, from 9:00 to 17:30 Pakistan time, Monday to Friday.
Sources
- State Bank of Pakistan, home remittance and the Pakistan Remittance Initiative, checked 18 October 2026
- SBP EPD Circular Letter No. 12 of 2026, 2 July 2026, checked 18 October 2026
- SBP EPD Circular Letter No. 04 of 2025, 30 June 2025, checked 18 October 2026
- Appendix A to EPD Circular Letter No. 04 of 2025 (PDF), checked 18 October 2026
- SBP EPD Circular Letter No. 09 of 2024, 8 October 2024, checked 18 October 2026
- SBP EPD Circular Letters No. 05 and 06 of 2025, 30 June 2025, checked 18 October 2026
- SBP press release on the Pasban Remittance Reward Scheme, 25 September 2026 (PDF), checked 18 October 2026
- 1LINK, Pasban Rewards customer terms and conditions (PDF), checked 18 October 2026
- SBP, Sohni Dharti Remittance Program page, archived copy of 16 December 2025 (Internet Archive), checked 18 October 2026
Last checked 18 October 2026. Rates on this page are from 8 November 2026 and are refreshed daily. If a rule here has changed, the official source wins.