Vehicle Import Rules Pakistan 2026

Gift Scheme vs Transfer of Residence vs Personal Baggage

The two personal schemes that still work, side by side with the one that no longer does.

Scroll the table sideways on a narrow screen. None of the three schemes is duty-free.

The Gift Scheme in detail

Under the Gift scheme, an overseas Pakistani (the donor) sends a vehicle to a close family member who normally lives in Pakistan (the donee). The donee does not have to have lived abroad — but the donor must meet the residence and timing tests, and the vehicle must be within the age limit.

Who can be the donor and the donee

• Donor: a “Pakistan National” as defined in the Import Policy Order — a citizen of Pakistan residing abroad, including a person with dual nationality and a foreign national of Indo-Pakistan origin who holds a Pakistan Origin Card. Minors cannot use the scheme.
• Donee: a member of the donor’s family, normally resident in Pakistan. “Family” here means parents, sister, brother, husband, wife and children (children under 18 excluded).

Conditions

• Stay abroad: the donor must have spent at least 850 days abroad during the past three years.
• 850-day gap: neither the donor nor the donee may have imported, gifted or received a vehicle under the Order in the preceding 850 days (see the 850-day section).
• Vehicle age: a car not more than three years old; other vehicles not more than five (see age rules).
• Payment: the duty and taxes must be paid out of foreign exchange sent from the donor’s account abroad, evidenced by a bank encashment certificate (see the foreign-exchange section).
• One-year lock: the vehicle cannot be sold or transferred for one year after import.
• Standards: the vehicle must meet the Ministry of Industries / EDB safety and environmental standards for used-vehicle imports, which SRO 61(I)/2026 applied to these schemes; compliance is verified by inspection (see below).

The Gift scheme does not reduce or waive the duty. Enter the vehicle in the Import Duty Calculator to see an estimate of what would be payable.

Transfer of Residence in detail

Transfer of Residence is for an overseas Pakistani who is genuinely moving their residence back to Pakistan and bringing their own vehicle with them.

• Who: a Pakistan National as defined above (citizen abroad, dual national or POC holder; not a minor).
• Stay abroad: at least 850 days during the past three years.
• 850-day gap: no import, gift or receipt of a vehicle under the Order in the preceding 850 days.
• Same country (new in 2026): SRO 61(I)/2026 added a condition that the vehicle must be imported from the same country where the overseas Pakistani resides. Shipping a car bought in a third country will not qualify.
• Vehicle age: a car not more than three years old; other vehicles not more than five.
• Motorcycles and scooters can only be imported under Transfer of Residence — and importing a motorcycle uses your entitlement, so you cannot also bring a car in the same transfer.
• Bill of lading: must be dated not later than 120 days from the date you arrive in Pakistan.
• Payment, one-year lock and standards / inspection: the same as for the Gift scheme.
• On death: a vehicle imported under Transfer of Residence is released to the legal heirs.

Personal Baggage — abolished for used vehicles

Until 15 January 2026, an overseas Pakistani could import one used vehicle as “personal baggage”, with a lighter residence test (180 days abroad in the last seven months). That route no longer exists for used vehicles.

SRO 61(I)/2026 removed the words “personal baggage” from the Import Policy Order, 2022 — from paragraph 16, from Appendix-B, and throughout Appendix-E (the opening clause and the eligibility, conditions, procedure and foreign-national clauses). The personal-baggage document procedure and the 180-day rule were deleted outright. Only the Gift and Transfer of Residence schemes are left.

A lot of material online — blog posts, forum threads and some older government explanatory pages and brochures — still describes Personal Baggage as if it were available. For used vehicles it is not, and has not been since 15 January 2026. If a source still lists it, check its date. We do not read anything into SRO 61(I)/2026 beyond what it says: it removed the scheme; it did not change the age limits or the duty.

Vehicle age rules and how age is measured

Under both remaining schemes, Appendix-E of the Import Policy Order, 2022 sets the age limits:

• A car may not be more than three years old.
• Other vehicles (jeeps, pickups, and so on) may not be more than five years old.
• Used bulletproof vehicles are not subject to the five-year limit.

These limits are not new and were not changed by SRO 61(I)/2026 — they are in the base Import Policy Order.

How the age is calculated

The Appendix-E “Explanation” is precise: the age of the vehicle is counted from 1 January of the year after the year of manufacture to the date of shipment shown on the bill of lading. So the clock does not start on the exact build date — it starts on the following 1 January.

1. A car manufactured at any point in 2024 has its age clock start on 1 January 2025.
2. To stay within the three-year limit, its bill of lading must be dated before 1 January 2028.
3. Shipped on or after that date, it is over three years old for scheme purposes — regardless of the exact month it was built.

The same start point (1 January after manufacture, to the shipment date) is used for the depreciation allowance on the customs side — that is explained on the Import Duty Calculator page, not here.

The 850-day condition — what it actually means

SRO 61(I)/2026 replaced “two years / 700 days” with 850 days in Appendix-E. The figure appears in two separate conditions, and it helps to keep them apart:

1. Minimum time lived abroad. To gift a vehicle, or to import one under Transfer of Residence, you must have spent at least 850 days abroad during the past three years (Appendix-E, condition on stay abroad).
2. Minimum time since your last vehicle. You cannot import or gift another vehicle until 850 days have passed from the date the goods declaration for your last import under this Order was filed. The same bar applies to anyone who has imported, gifted or received a vehicle in that window (Appendix-E, definition of “last three years” and the eligibility proviso).

Both must be satisfied. A common trap: you have lived abroad for years, but you (or the family member you want to gift to) brought in a vehicle 18 months ago — the second test is not yet met.

The one-year non-transfer restriction

SRO 61(I)/2026 added a new clause to Appendix-E: a vehicle imported under the Gift or Transfer of Residence scheme “shall remain non-transferable for one year from the date of importation.”

In plain terms — you cannot sell it, gift it on, or transfer its registration to anyone else for twelve months after it is imported. This is a change from the earlier position, where scheme vehicles could be sold sooner.

Safety standards and inspection

SRO 61(I)/2026 added a clause to Appendix-E: the minimum safety, environmental standards and regulatory measures that apply to the commercial import of used vehicles — as notified by the Ministry of Industries and Production / Engineering Development Board — now “apply mutatis mutandis to vehicles imported under the gift and transfer of residence schemes.”

Those standards are set out in the EDB / Ministry of Industries notification No. EDB/Auto/Import/WP-29/2025, dated 30 September 2025, which adopts the UN (“WP.29”) vehicle safety regulations. The EDB’s published criteria require that a used vehicle be inspected by an EDB-accredited body before it leaves the country of origin, with a certificate confirming it has not been in a major accident, has not had its odometer altered, is structurally sound and roadworthy with its airbags intact; a second inspection is carried out on arrival in Pakistan at the importer’s cost.

The inspection mechanism has been introduced in stages and, at points during 2026, delayed while ministries settled how it applies to personal-scheme imports. Before you buy a vehicle abroad, confirm with the EDB, or with Edge of Wheels, whether an inspection currently applies to your import and which firms are accredited.

Paying the duty from foreign remittance

Appendix-E requires that the duty and taxes on a scheme vehicle be paid out of foreign exchange. The money must originate from the overseas Pakistani’s own account abroad and be routed through the banking channel, supported by a bank encashment certificate showing the conversion of the remittance into rupees.

If the rupee weakens, or the government raises the duty, between the remittance and the filing of the goods declaration — leaving a shortfall — the difference may be met from local sources.

Documents generally required

Appendix-E lists the core documents for each scheme. In practice Customs and the inspection regime also expect the items in the second list.

Also needed in practice

• Export / de-registration certificate from the exporting country (for example the Japanese export certificate)
• Safety-standard / pre-shipment inspection certificate, where the MoIP/EDB inspection regime applies to your import
• Bank encashment certificate for the foreign remittance used to pay the duty
• Evidence of your stay abroad (visa pages, residence permit, entry/exit record)
• The auction sheet, with a translation where required

Document requirements are applied by the clearing Collectorate and can vary with the vehicle and the port. Send Edge of Wheels your paperwork and we will tell you what is missing before the vehicle sails. If you are buying the vehicle in Japan, the Japan import guide covers the auction, the export certificate and shipping.

What about commercial import?

This is a separate route and does not change any of the Gift or Transfer of Residence eligibility rules above. It is for businesses, not individuals: during 2025–26 Pakistan opened a framework for the commercial import of used vehicles by registered companies.

What is on the public record from a primary source — the Engineering Development Board’s published registration criteria for used-vehicle import companies — is that a commercial importer must:

• be a company incorporated under the Companies Act, 2017, with the import of motor vehicles as its principal business (individuals and sole proprietors are not eligible for a commercial import licence);
• hold a valid National Tax Number and be an active sales-tax filer with the FBR, and hold an EDB registration certificate before importing;
• route all payments — for the vehicles and the duties — through authorised banking channels;
• maintain an after-sales service and spare-parts network, have each vehicle inspected before shipment and again on arrival, and issue a Certificate of Conformity to the EDB safety-standards notification.

The age limits, the additional duties and the exact tariff coverage on the commercial route differ from the personal schemes and changed through 2026. Duty on this route is assessed on the vehicle’s value — see the Import Duty Calculator. Confirm the current commercial-import conditions with the Ministry of Commerce, the EDB and the FBR before relying on them.

Common mistakes and practical issues

• Buying a car that is already too old by the shipment date. The age clock starts on 1 January after manufacture and runs to the bill-of-lading date — not to the date you paid or the date it arrives.
• Assuming Personal Baggage still exists. It does not for used vehicles, and has not since 15 January 2026.
• Not clearing the 850-day tests. Both apply: enough days lived abroad, and enough days since your (or the donee’s) last vehicle.
• Transfer of Residence from the wrong country. Since 2026 the vehicle must come from the country where you actually live.
• Selling within the first year. Scheme vehicles are locked for twelve months from import.
• Ignoring the MoIP/EDB safety standards. Where an inspection applies, use an EDB-accredited firm and inspect before the vehicle is shipped.
• Paying the duty from local funds without the foreign-remittance and bank-encashment paper trail.
• Relying on a forged or mismatched auction sheet. Check the year and the manufacturer grade against the chassis number first — the Vehicle Tools page has both.
• Treating a duty estimate as the final bill. Customs makes the binding assessment on the goods declaration.

Frequently asked questions

Can overseas Pakistanis still import a used car in 2026?

Yes — under the Gift scheme or the Transfer of Residence scheme. The Personal Baggage route for used vehicles was abolished by SRO 61(I)/2026 on 15 January 2026.

What is the difference between the Gift Scheme and Transfer of Residence?

Under the Gift scheme you send a vehicle to a close family member who lives in Pakistan; you do not move yourself. Under Transfer of Residence you are moving your own residence back to Pakistan and bringing your own vehicle — and since 2026 that vehicle must come from the country where you were living.

How old can the vehicle be?

A car may not be more than three years old; other vehicles not more than five. Age is counted from 1 January of the year after the vehicle was built to the date of shipment on the bill of lading. A used bulletproof vehicle is not subject to the five-year limit.

What does the 850-day rule mean?

Two things. First, you must have spent at least 850 days abroad in the past three years. Second, at least 850 days must have passed since the goods declaration for your last vehicle import under this Order — and the same applies if you gifted or received a vehicle in that time.

Can I sell the car after importing it?

Not for one year. A vehicle imported under Gift or Transfer of Residence cannot be sold or transferred for one year from the date of importation (SRO 61(I)/2026).

Does my vehicle need a safety inspection?

SRO 61(I)/2026 applied the Ministry of Industries / EDB vehicle safety and environmental standards (notification EDB/Auto/Import/WP-29/2025, 30 September 2025) to the Gift and Transfer of Residence schemes. The EDB’s criteria require inspection by an accredited body before the vehicle leaves the country of origin, and again on arrival in Pakistan.

The mechanism for personal-scheme imports has been phased in and, at times, delayed. Check the current requirement and the accredited firms with the EDB or Edge of Wheels before you buy.

Can I import a motorcycle?

Only under Transfer of Residence, and it uses your entitlement — you cannot also bring a car in the same transfer. Motorcycles and scooters are not allowed under the Gift scheme.

Is importing under a scheme duty-free?

No. None of the schemes waives customs duty and taxes. Use the Import Duty Calculator for an estimate of what would be payable.

Can Edge of Wheels handle the clearance?

Yes. Edge of Wheels is a customs clearing agent in Karachi and handles vehicle and motorcycle import clearance at Karachi Port and Port Qasim, including Gift and Transfer of Residence documentation.

Primary sources

Use these to verify anything on this page. Where an older explanatory page or brochure conflicts with a newer notification, the newer instrument governs.

• Eligibility — the schemes. Ministry of Commerce, Import Policy Order, 2022, Appendix-E, and its amending SROs, including SRO 61(I)/2026 (dated 15 January 2026): commerce.gov.pk/sros
• Safety / environmental standards and inspection. Ministry of Industries and Production / Engineering Development Board notification No. EDB/Auto/Import/WP-29/2025 (30 September 2025) and the EDB registration/inspection criteria: edb.gov.pk
• Commercial import. Ministry of Commerce and EDB — the used-vehicle commercial-import framework and its amendments: commerce.gov.pk/sros, edb.gov.pk
• Duty, valuation and clearance. FBR / Pakistan Customs and Pakistan Single Window: fbr.gov.pk, psw.gov.pk. The duty method is explained on our Import Duty Calculator page.