KARACHI: The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Monday introduced new measures to facilitate IT exporters and freelancers by introducing a set of reforms for these exports.

“These reforms are designed to simplify the export realisation procedures, standardise documentation requirements, set transaction processing timelines, and strengthen complaint resolution mechanisms,” said a circular by the SBP.

Under the facilitation measures, IT companies and freelancers will no longer be required to submit ‘Form R’ for each individual export transaction. Instead, they will provide a one-time declaration, clearly specifying the nature of services being offered overseas, at the time of opening a new account and, for existing customers, as and when required.

The SBP said that the authorised dealers (banks) will tag the relevant service and purpose codes to the exporters’ accounts for reporting and processing export transactions, unless advised otherwise by the exporter.

No ‘Form R’ for individual deals; threshold raised above $25,000

A maximum turnaround time of one working day has been introduced for processing inward export receipts and outward remittances from Exporters’ Special Foreign Currency Accounts (ESFCAs), the SBP said.

Documentation requirements for outward remittances from ESFCAs for acquiring services from abroad have been standardised to promote clarity and consistency across banks, it added.

Banks have been instructed to establish effective internal systems to ensure the timely resolution of complaints raised by IT companies and freelancers, enhancing service quality and responsiveness, it added.

Freelancers and small and medium-sized enterprises are major drivers, with freelance inflows estimated to contribute heavily to the total.

The State Bank said the reporting requirements for exporters and importers of services have also been simplified through revisions in ‘Form R’, the Inward Remittance Voucher (IRV), and ‘Form M’.

The threshold for obtaining ‘Form R’ has been increased to above $25,000 (or the equivalent in other currencies), providing convenience to beneficiaries. Additionally, banks have been advised to digitalise these forms with auto-population functionality for the customer’s basic data to promote ease of doing business, said the SBP.

Pakistan’s IT exports grew by 18 per cent to reach $3.8 billion in FY25 compared to the previous year. This growth was driven by software development, freelance earnings, and government incentives.

Published in Dawn, April 7th, 2026