When you start a business, the most important thing that crosses your mind is how to register your business in Pakistan. Registering your company helps in expanding business regardless of whether you are a medium-sized company or a large enterprise. All businesses in Pakistan follow the registration and regulation process of the Companies Ordinance Act of 1984. According to law, in Pakistan, every company is an enterprise body with perpetual succession and its own legal entity. Other than local businesses, foreign investors also go through the process of registering a company in Pakistan.

There are many factors that give you a reason to invest in Pakistan. Some of the key advantages include an increasingly growing economy, a large population, and low competition. Unlike other countries, Pakistan is always open to inviting foreign investors. The last few years have seen more reasons to invite foreign investors to Pakistan since the country’s reputation among other nations is getting worse.

Register Your Business with SECP

Security and Exchange Commission of Pakistan, also known as SECP, is a governing body that controls the administrative functions of all organizations. Registering the company in Pakistan isn’t a complicated process. By properly following the rules outlined by the Pakistani government, the whole registration process will become smooth for you. Let’s discuss a step-by-step guide to registering your company with the Security Exchange Commission of Pakistan. 

Get Approval for Your Company Name

Before you select your company name, be sure that you avoid the prohibited terms. SECP will not approve any offensive and deceptive words. Plus, it will scrutinize the validity of your proposed selected company name. Please note that the name should not be either identical to any existing name or even closely resemble a name already in use. If you want to avoid this problem, ensure that you follow the naming criteria provided by SECP.

Pay the Incorporation Fee and Get Registration

SECP gives you a certificate for name availability that can also be used for the purpose of filing applications. Pay the registration at any MCB Bank using the challan document. The next level of registration includes SECP asking you to submit the necessary documents that include:

Create a Company Seal and a Digital Signature

National Institutional Facilitation Technologies aka NIFT grants the company’s signature. Get that with SECP’s E-services. Once you have obtained the incorporation certificate, depending on where you plan to start your business, you may be asked to provide a company seal. It’s also worth mentioning that some states require businesses to have a corporate seal, commonly known as a “company seal.” 

Register for Professional Taxes, Income, and Sales

You must register for income tax as well in order to completely register your business. For that reason, you have to get the NTN (National Tax Number) by submitting an application to the Regional Tax Office of the FBR (Federal Board of Revenue). The application includes the following things:

Submit these documents at the nearest tax facilitation office of the RTO in Pakistan. In the same way, Sales Tax may be registered at the RTO’s tax facilitation counter in the FBR by applying for STN.

Register with ESSI and EOBI

You may be required to register with either one of them depending on the location of your business:

Employees with insurance are able to receive pensions upon retirement, survivor’s pensions, old-age grants, and invalidity benefits in the event of disability through EOBI (Employees Old-Age Benefits Institution). Almost all businesses and industries employing five or more people must be registered with the Employees Old Age Benefits Institution aka EOBI. 

Register with the District’s Labor Department

The Labor Department’s District Chief Inspector in each district must register every establishment except one-man shops in order to ensure the protection of the Employee’s labor standard.  The registration process requires the owner of the company to submit a Form A application and bank challan.