Pakistan, located in South Asia, is bordered by India to the east, China to the northeast, Afghanistan to the north and west, Iran to the southwest, and the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman to the south. The northern and western highlands of Pakistan contain the towering Karakoram and Pamir mountain ranges, which include some of the World’s highest peaks: K2 (8,611 meters) and Nanga Parbat (8,126 meters). The 1,000 miles long (1,609 kilometers) Indus River and its tributaries flow through the country from the Kashmir region to the Arabian Sea. Pakistan is divided into 113 districts. Agriculture, now no longer the largest sector, contributes roughly one-fifth of GDP, while manufacturing provides about one-sixth. Textiles account for most of Pakistan’s export earnings. Trade and services, which combined constitute the largest component of the economy, have grown considerably.
*Please note that the official currency is the currency of remuneration when employed through WorkMotion in Pakistan.
Capital : Islamabad | Currency : Pakistani Rupee (PKR, Rs) | Languages spoken : Urdu and English |
Population : 225.2 million (2021 est.) | Minimum wage 2023 : PKR 20,000 Monthly (Federal) | Cost of Living index : $ (139 of 139 countries) |
Payroll Frequency : Fortnightly/Monthly | VAT - standard rate : 17% | GDP - real growth rate : 6% (2021 est.) |
The national holidays mentioned below are valid for the year 2023.
The approximate time for sharing the contract with an employee in Pakistan is 4 business days assuming no special requests or changes to our standard employment contract. Any such requests or changes would need to undergo internal and external review, directly leading to a time delay.
NOTE: This number is subject to change and is only an estimation of the Contract Sharing Time. The estimated Contract Sharing Time begins from the moment that WorkMotion has received all required information from both the client and the employee.
The maximum number of working hours per week is 48 hours. The daily limit of working hours is nine hours including breaks. No work period can exceed six hours before an interval for the rest of at least one hour is granted, or it should not exceed five hours before an interval for rest of at least half an hour, or for more than eight hours before at least two such intervals have been granted.
If a worker works more than nine hours in any day or more than 48 hours in any week, they are entitled in respect of the overtime worked to be paid at the rate of twice their ordinary rate of pay.
A probationer is defined as a workman who is provisionally employed to fill a permanent vacancy in a post and has not completed three months of service therein. No probationer is entitled to any notice if their services are terminated by the employer, nor is any such workman required to give any notice or pay wages in lieu thereof to the employer if they leave employment of their own accord.
The termination notice periods are as follows:
| Termination Cause | Notice Period |
| Probationary period | None |
| Any reason other than misconduct by an employer or employee | 1 month (may be paid in lieu) |
| Dismissal due to alleged misconduct | 1 month from the date of such misconduct to give an opportunity to explain the alleged circumstances. |
| The failure of plant, a temporary curtailment of production, or any stoppage of work. |
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Any worker who has completed a period of 12 months of continuous service in a factory is allowed, during the subsequent period of 12 months, holidays for a period of 14 consecutive days.
If a worker fails in any one such period of 12 months to take the whole of the holidays allowed to them, the remaining period is added to the holidays to be allowed in the succeeding period of 12 months. However, the total number of holidays that may be carried forward to a succeeding period cannot exceed 14.
Sick leave varies between provinces.
| Province | Sick Leave |
| Federal | 16 days with half average pay |
| Sindh | 16 days with full average pay |
| Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (North-West Frontier Province) | 16 days with half average pay |
| Punjab | 8 days with full average pay |
| Balochistan | 8 days with full average pay |
| Gilgit Baltistan | Not specified yet in labor legislation as the province is newly included in Pakistan. |
| Azad Jammu and Kashmir | 8 days with full average pay |
Women employees of public and private establishments under federal law get paid maternity leave of:
| Birth | Number of Days |
| First | 180 days (six months) |
| Second | 120 days (four months) |
| Third | 90 days (three months) |
Male employees of public and private establishments under federal law get paid paternity leave of 30 days.
Each worker is entitled to casual leave with full pay of 10 days a year. Such leave is not ordinarily granted for more than three days at a time and is not accumulated. Casual leave is granted upon contingent situations such as sudden illness or any other urgent purpose. It should be obtained on a prior application unless the urgency prevents the making of such an application.
Under agreements made with the Collective Bargaining Agent, employees who proceed on pilgrimage i.e., Hajj, Umra, Ziarat, are granted special leave for up to 60 days. This benefit varies as per the applicable collective bargaining agreement.
Pakistan’s constitution was amended in 2010 to devolve social and labor legislation to the provinces. Some provinces have passed legislation but maintain key features of existing federal programs, and federal legislation is still in effect for provinces that have not yet passed legislation.
| Benefits | Employer contribution | Employee Contribution |
| Old Age, Disability, and Survivors | 5% of the monthly minimum wage. |
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| Sickness, Maternity and work injury |
| PKR 40 (2018) monthly |
Employer contribution is 6% of monthly payroll. In Balochistan, the employer’s contribution goes up to 7% of monthly payroll up to PKR 5,000.
The employer’s contributions also finance work injury benefits.
Private-sector employees and household workers with monthly earnings of up to PKR 18,000 or PKR 22,000 in Punjab province are covered.
Eligibility for benefits does not cease upon leaving covered employment.
Employers’ contribution of 6% and employees’ contribution of PKR 40 of monthly roll for sickness, maternity, and work injury benefits fund these benefits.
Private-sector employees and household workers with monthly earnings of up to PKR 18,000 or 22,000 in Punjab province are covered. Employees of firms with at least 10 workers are eligible.
The labor code requires employers with at least 20 employees to provide a severance payment of the employee’s last 30 days of wages for each year of employment. Apart from this regulation, there are no unemployment benefits for employees. However, the scope for a regular ‘Unemployment Insurance / Unemployment Benefit program that is capable of providing any support to the laid-off/unemployed workers in case of any natural or human-made calamity – including benefits to the health workforce is being analyzed.
Employer contributes 5% of the monthly minimum wage, while employees contribute 1% of their monthly salary towards old age, disability, and survivors pension. Employees from Sindh province do not pay any contribution.
Old-age Pension is paid to beneficiaries of age 60 (men) or age 55 (women) with at least 15 years of contributions. Covered employment may continue. 2% of the insured’s average monthly earnings in the last 12 months multiplied by the number of years of contributions is paid.
The survivor benefits are funded from old-age pension contributions.
Survivor’s Pension
The deceased was in covered employment at the time of death and had at least 36 months of contributions; or received or was entitled to receive an old-age or disability pension. Spouse’s Pension, Orphan’s Pension, Dependent Parent’s Pension are paid.
Iddat Grant
A widow in covered employment may receive a lump sum of up to 130 times her daily earnings on the date of her husband’s death.
Death Grant
A lump sum of 30 days of the sickness benefit is paid to an eligible widow(er) or the person who paid for the funeral. The minimum death grant is PKR 1,500.
Survivor Grant (employer liability)
A lump sum of PKR 200,000 (PKR 300,000 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, PKR 400,000 in Punjab, or PKR 500,000 in Sindh) has been paid.
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