Foreign company branch and liaison offices in Pakistan

A foreign company that wants a presence in Pakistan without incorporating a local subsidiary can operate through a branch or a liaison office — but doing so triggers registration with SECP on a tight timeline and requires permission from the Board of Investment. The two office types also differ in what they are allowed to do. This guide explains the registration, the permission, and the branch-versus-liaison distinction.

Registering with SECP

Under Pakistan's company law, a foreign company that establishes a place of business in Pakistan must register with SECP within thirty days of doing so. Registration is by delivering the prescribed documents, which typically include the company's charter or constitution (its founding document from its home jurisdiction), particulars of its directors and of the principal officer it appoints in Pakistan, and the address of its place of business. The thirty-day window is short, so a foreign company setting up here should have its documentation ready to file promptly once it establishes its place of business, rather than treating registration as something to arrange later.

Board of Investment permission

Registration with SECP is not the only requirement. A branch or liaison office additionally requires permission from the Board of Investment (BOI). This is a distinct approval from the SECP registration, and it is central to setting up the office: the BOI permission is what authorises the foreign company to operate the branch or liaison office in the first place, and the SECP registration then records the foreign company's place of business on the corporate register. A foreign company therefore has to navigate both the BOI permission and the SECP registration, and understanding that there are two separate steps avoids the mistake of assuming one covers the other.

Branch versus liaison office

The two office types are not interchangeable, because their permitted scope differs:

• A branch office is generally established to carry out a specific contract or activity in Pakistan, and can undertake that commercial work.
• A liaison (representative) office is generally limited to non-commercial functions — promoting the parent company, coordinating, and acting as a point of contact — and does not carry on trading or earn commercial income in Pakistan.

So the choice between them turns on what the company actually intends to do. A company with a contract to perform needs a branch; a company that only wants a representative presence to build relationships uses a liaison office. Setting up the wrong one for the intended activity causes problems, so this decision is made up front based on the real purpose of the presence.

Branch, liaison office and subsidiary compared

Rows two and three carry the decision. A liaison office that invoices a Pakistani customer has exceeded its permission — not committed a technical breach but done the one thing the permission exists to prevent — and because neither a branch nor a liaison office is a separate legal person, everything either does binds the parent directly. A subsidiary is the only column where an adverse outcome stops at the Pakistani entity.

The last row is the one that surprises long-term entrants: branch and liaison permissions are granted for a period and renewed, so a structure that works today needs an active renewal file rather than a one-off approval. A group intending to be in Pakistan for a decade usually finds the subsidiary simpler despite the heavier set-up.

Not a separate company, and what follows

An important structural point: a branch or liaison office is not a separate Pakistani company — it is the foreign company itself operating here through a registered place of business. This differs from incorporating a Pakistani subsidiary, which would be a distinct local company. The choice between a branch, a liaison office, and a local subsidiary depends on the intended activity, liability appetite, and tax considerations, so it is worth weighing before committing. Once established, a foreign company's Pakistani presence also brings it within other obligations — notably the beneficial ownership regime, which extends to foreign companies with a branch or liaison office. Foreign investors comparing jurisdictions often look at the equivalent routes elsewhere, such as company formation in Saudi Arabia, when deciding where and how to establish.

Sources

This guide is written against the official and clearly labelled professional references below. Rates, thresholds and portal procedures change between reviews, so open the primary source before relying on a figure.

• Companies Act 2017 (SECP)
• Company Registration (SECP)
• Start Your Company (SECP)

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