Pakistan’s IT sector grows rapidly, Hits $3.14 Billion in export earnings

ISLAMABAD: Official data shows that Pakistan’s IT exports grew by 21% year-on-year during the first ten months (July–April) of the current fiscal year 2024–25.

Pakistan’s Information Technology (IT) and IT-enabled Services (ITeS) sector, including computer services and call center services, generated $3.142 billion in remittances during July–April FY25, rising from $2.594 billion in the same period last fiscal year.

In April 2025, Pakistan’s IT exports increased by 2% year over year, reaching $317 million compared to $310 million in April 2024. However, the sector recorded a 7% decline month over month, falling from $342 million in March 2025.

Pakistan’s IT sector achieved a historic milestone in FY 2023–24 by generating $3.223 billion in remittances, marking a 24% increase from the $2.596 billion recorded in FY 2022–23.

Despite the steady rise, the government acknowledged that a large portion of IT export revenue remains unremitted. To address this, it set an ambitious target to boost total IT exports from $3.2 billion in FY24 to $4.2 billion in FY25.

Pakistan hosts an estimated 2.32 million freelancers who contribute roughly 15% to the country’s total IT exports. However, only 38,000 of them currently maintain active bank accounts. Although banks are opening around 500 new freelancer accounts each week, authorities are now focusing on improving account retention and onboarding.

To support the growing IT sector, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) increased the foreign exchange retention limit to 50% or $5,000 per month, whichever is higher, up from the earlier 35%. The central bank also directed commercial banks to simplify the procedures for opening both PKR and foreign currency accounts, aiming to benefit freelancers and IT companies alike.