The federal government has directed the implementation of a fresh round of austerity and fuel conservation measures, with IT companies and call centres specifically exempted from the notified restrictions. The notification, issued by the Cabinet Division under Cabinet Secretary Kamran Ali Afzal and dated September 17, 2026, follows recommendations from the Committee for Monitoring and Implementation of Fuel Conservation and Additional Austerity Measures, extending a series of cost cutting directives the government has issued periodically over the past several fiscal years in response to economic pressures. Among the measures covered in the notification are a 50 percent reduction in fuel provision for official vehicles over three months, a 5 percent cut to the Non-ERE Budget for FY 2026-27, complete bans on vehicle and durables purchases, and a full ban on foreign visits and travel for three months, alongside restrictions on official dinners, seminars, and conferences funded by the government.
The notification also sets specific market closing timings across various categories of business and commercial establishments, applicable all days of the week. Shops, markets, shopping malls, bazaars, and departmental, grocery, general, and kiryana stores must close by 9:00 PM, while marriage halls, marquees, and other commercial places hosting festive events must shut by 10:00 PM. Restaurants, cafés, eateries, food outlets, and standalone fruit and vegetable shops are required to close by 11:00 PM, though takeaway and home delivery services remain exempt from this specific timing restriction. Pharmacies, medical and medical supplies stores, medical laboratories, clinics, and hospitals are exempt entirely, as are standalone bakeries, tandoors, milk and dairy shops, fuel and CNG pumps, electric vehicle charging stations, and gyms, sports facilities, and padel courts.
Crucially for Pakistan’s technology sector, IT companies and call centres have been placed in the same exempt category as pharmacies, hospitals, and fuel stations, meaning they face no mandated closing time under the new notification. Industry observers have framed this exemption as a deliberate move to facilitate uninterrupted operations of the IT services sector and support the continuity of Pakistan’s broader digital journey, recognizing that many IT companies and call centres serving international clients operate around the clock or on shifts aligned with overseas time zones rather than standard local business hours. Given that a mandated closing time would have directly disrupted operations for companies serving clients in different time zones, particularly those in North America and Europe where working hours fall overnight in Pakistan, the exemption addresses a practical operational concern specific to the sector’s global service delivery model.
The exemption reflects a pattern of policy carve outs the government has extended to Pakistan’s IT and IT enabled services sector during past austerity and restriction announcements, given the sector’s export earnings and its stated role in the country’s broader digital economy ambitions. With Pakistan’s technology exports having grown steadily over recent fiscal years and government officials repeatedly emphasizing targets like $10 billion in IT exports by FY2028-29, protecting the sector’s uninterrupted operational capacity from broader economic austerity measures aligns with the government’s stated priority of sustaining export led growth even as other parts of the economy face tighter restrictions. The Cabinet Division’s notification also allows the Committee for Monitoring and Implementation of Fuel Conservation and Additional Austerity Measures to consider exemption requests from other sectors on a case by case basis, with provincial and regional governments encouraged to consider adopting similar measures for consistency across the country.
Follow the SPIN IDG WhatsApp Channel for updates across the Smart Pakistan Insights Network covering all of Pakistan’s technology ecosystem.
