Introduction
In order to operate in Pakistan, businesses need to fulfill requirements of three tiers of Government (Federal, Provincial and Local Governments). A large number of Government departments / organizations have prescribed multiple “Registrations, Licenses, Certificates and Other permits (RLCOs)” for establishing and operating such businesses. Many of these RLCOs envisage cumbersome processing through manual application procedures.
To reduce the compliance burden on businesses, the Prime Minister of Pakistan approved the launch of “Pakistan Regulatory Modernization Initiative (PRMI)”, established a Steering Committee for implementing PRMI activities and designated the Board of Investment (BOI) as the lead agency. The key objective of this initiative is to reduce the compliance burden of businesses on one hand while improving the effectiveness of regulatory regime on the other.
A major deliverable of this project is the establishment of an online “One Stop Shop” by the name of “Pakistan Business Portal”. This will enable businesses to find regulatory requirements, in respect of different sectors, submit their applications electronically and also pay the fees/charges online to obtain required licenses/permits.
