A Roshan Digital Account is a bank account for Pakistanis who live abroad, offered by commercial banks under a State Bank of Pakistan initiative. It comes as a foreign currency account or a rupee account, is funded only from abroad, can be used for bills, investments and property in Pakistan, and the money in it can be sent back abroad without approval.
Who can open one?
The State Bank lists three groups:
- non resident Pakistanis with a Pakistani passport, NICOP, POC or NIC;
- foreign nationals and foreign companies;
- resident Pakistanis who have declared assets abroad to the Federal Board of Revenue. They can open the foreign currency account only, need their latest FBR wealth statement or a signed affidavit, and must visit a branch.
What are the two kinds of account?
A Foreign Currency Value Account holds foreign currency. The State Bank lists US dollar, pound sterling, euro, Japanese yen, Canadian dollar, UAE dirham, Saudi riyal, Chinese yuan, Swiss franc and Turkish lira. A Rupee Value Account holds Pakistani rupees.
Both are filled from abroad: the State Bank's answers say funds "can only be transferred into the Roshan Digital Account from abroad".
What can the money be used for?
From the rupee account: government securities, including Naya Pakistan Certificates, treasury bills, Pakistan Investment Bonds, sukuk and prize bonds; shares and mutual funds listed in Pakistan; and residential and commercial property. From the foreign currency account: Naya Pakistan Certificates in foreign currency and foreign currency deposits.
The accounts also give digital access to ordinary banking: transfers, bills and fees, and online payments, along with two linked offers the State Bank names, Roshan Apni Car and Roshan Samaji Khidmat.
Can the money go back abroad?
Yes. The State Bank says funds in the account "can be remitted back from Pakistan without any approval from the bank or SBP". One exception: for property sold within three years of purchase, the original amount can be sent back at any time, but any capital gain only after three years, under the rule its answers attribute to FE Circular 01 of 2020.
Which currencies do Naya Pakistan Certificates come in?
The State Bank's own pages disagree. Its main page lists US dollars, rupees, euros, Saudi riyals, UAE dirhams and pounds sterling; its page for resident Pakistanis lists US dollars, pounds and euros. Ask the bank which ones it offers you before you plan around one.
What should you check before opening one?
The account is offered by individual banks, not by the State Bank itself, so the details differ from bank to bank. Before you apply, ask the bank you choose:
- which of the two accounts, and which currencies, it offers you;
- what it charges for the account, for transfers out and for any card;
- what exchange rate it uses when money moves from the foreign currency account to rupees, and how that compares with the mid market rate of the day;
- which Naya Pakistan Certificates, and in which currencies, it can buy for you, and at what profit rate today.
Profit rates and fees change, so take them from the bank on the day rather than from any list.
Is it the same as an ordinary home remittance?
Not quite. Money sent to a family member's bank account is a home remittance. Money sent into your own Roshan Digital Account stays yours and is meant for your own payments and investments in Pakistan. The 2025 rules for free home remittances also left out transfers into the rupee accounts of the Roshan scheme for banks, so do not assume the same fee treatment applies.
On tax, the State Bank's answers say there is no withholding tax on cash withdrawals or account to account transfers by non resident Pakistanis. This site has not checked that against the Income Tax Ordinance; see is money sent from abroad taxed for what it did check.
Sources
- State Bank of Pakistan, Roshan Digital Accounts, checked 18 October 2026
- SBP, Roshan Digital Account for resident Pakistanis, checked 18 October 2026
- SBP, frequently asked questions on the Roshan Digital Account, checked 18 October 2026
- Appendix A to EPD Circular Letter No. 04 of 2025 (PDF), checked 18 October 2026
Last checked 18 October 2026. If a rule here has changed, the official source wins.