Bank charges in Pakistan: ATM, IBFT and debit card fees compared

ATM withdrawal charges at another bank’s ATM are Rs 35 per withdrawal at HBL, UBL, MCB, Allied, Meezan, Bank Alfalah and NBP, as of their July to December 2026 schedules. Most of them charge nothing at their own ATMs. Transfers to other banks (IBFT) are free up to Rs 25,000 a month, then 0.1% or Rs 200, whichever is lower. Raast transfers are free.

What are ATM withdrawal charges from another bank?

All 7 banks list Rs 35 for a cash withdrawal at another bank’s ATM. The table shows each bank’s own figure and whether its schedule says the fee includes tax.

FED is the federal excise duty; some schedules also mention provincial sales tax. When a bank quotes a fee “excluding FED”, tax can be added on top, so its Rs 35 is not directly comparable with a Rs 35 that already includes tax.

Sources: each bank’s July to December 2026 schedule; easypaisa’s October to December 2026 branchless banking schedule. “Not stated” means the ATM rows in that schedule don’t say whether tax is included.

A printed receipt can cost extra. HBL charges Rs 3.13 for a receipt at its own ATMs and Rs 4.67 at other banks’ ATMs; UBL charges Rs 3.75 at its own ATMs and Rs 4.67 elsewhere.

Are ATM withdrawals at other banks free on any account?

Some accounts waive the fee. HBL gives free other-bank ATM withdrawals on HBL @Work accounts and on HBL Freedom accounts that keep a monthly average balance of Rs 40,000 or more, as of its July to December 2026 schedule.

We didn’t find a similar waiver for the other banks in the rows we checked. If you withdraw often, the simplest saving is to use your own bank’s ATM, which is free at HBL, UBL, Allied, Meezan, Bank Alfalah and NBP.

When did the ATM fee go up to Rs 35?

On 1 August 2025, according to MCB Islamic Bank’s addendum. It says 1LINK revised its ATM charges, and the fee at 1LINK member banks’ ATMs went from Rs 23.44 (valid until 31 July 2025) to Rs 35.

Mettis Global reported the same rise in July 2025 and dated it to that month. We follow the bank’s own addendum, which says the change took effect in August.

What are IBFT charges per month?

IBFT is an interbank fund transfer: money you send from your bank to an account at a different bank. SBP’s PSD Circular 02 of 2021 sets the rule for individual customers:

• The first Rs 25,000 you send to other banks each month is free, with no limit on the number of transfers within that amount.
• Above Rs 25,000, a bank may charge 0.1% of the transfer or Rs 200, whichever is lower.
• Transfers within the same bank and all incoming transfers stay free.

The rule covers banks, microfinance banks and EMIs (electronic money institutions, such as wallet apps). It has applied since 1 July 2021, and banks may not cap the number of transfers except for genuine fraud or money-laundering concerns.

At 0.1%, the Rs 200 cap is reached on a transfer of Rs 200,000. So above the free amount, a Rs 50,000 transfer costs up to Rs 50, and anything over Rs 200,000 costs up to Rs 200.

Branch transfers can cost more. UBL charges a flat Rs 200 for an IBFT at a branch, and Bank Alfalah charges Rs 200 per branch transfer, including tax. We couldn’t find a row for IBFT through the Alfa app on a regular Bank Alfalah account, so it isn’t in the table.

Are Raast transfers free?

Yes. SBP’s Raast FAQs say there are currently no charges for sending or receiving money through Raast. UBL, MCB and Allied Bank also list Raast transfers as free in their July to December 2026 schedules.

You can send a Raast payment to a Raast ID or an IBAN, through your bank’s app, internet banking, USSD or a branch, depending on the bank. Because Raast is free and IBFT isn’t above Rs 25,000, Raast is the cheaper route for large transfers when your bank offers it. See our Raast guide for how to set it up.

What is the tax on cash withdrawal for non-filers?

Under section 231AB of the Income Tax Ordinance, banks deduct 0.8% advance tax from people not on FBR’s Active Taxpayers’ List (ATL, the list of filers) when their total cash withdrawals in a day exceed Rs 50,000. FBR’s rate card under the Finance Act 2026 lists no rate for people on the ATL.

The Rs 50,000 counts all your cash withdrawals in a single day added together. The rate was 0.6% when the section was added in 2023 and became 0.8% under the Finance Act 2025.

What is the debit card annual fee at each bank?

Debit card fees vary far more than ATM fees. The table shows the cheapest PayPak card and the entry-level Visa card each bank lists, as of July to December 2026. Here, too, some banks quote fees before tax and some after.

A few details that change what you pay:

• UBL, MCB, Allied, Meezan and Bank Alfalah charge the same amount to issue the cards in the table as the yearly fee. UBL takes the annual fee in advance.
• NBP charges much less to issue than to renew: Rs 760 to issue a PayPak Classic card, then Rs 2,000 a year. Its UnionPay Classic card is Rs 600 to issue and Rs 2,500 a year.
• Meezan charges the annual fee only on activated cards. Its Women First Visa card costs Rs 500 to issue, then Rs 3,500 a year, and its student card is free.
• Bank Alfalah waives the annual fee on some accounts, such as Kamyab Karobar, if your average balance over the last 6 months is Rs 50,000 or more.
• easypaisa lists issuance fees only: Visa Rs 1,000, UnionPay Rs 999, PayPak Rs 1,000 and a Visa Online card Rs 500.

Replacing a lost card costs Rs 600 (PayPak Chip) or Rs 850 (Visa Chip) at HBL, and Rs 1,800 at UBL. We couldn’t find HBL’s issuance fee, separate from the annual fee, in its schedule.

What are SMS alert charges at HBL and other banks?

SBP’s 2021 circular says you must get a free SMS after every digital transaction, showing the amount and any charge taken. The fees below are for alerts on branch or over-the-counter transactions.

HBL exempts several account types from its Rs 325 fee, including HBL @Work and Freedom accounts with a Rs 40,000 or higher average balance. UBL, MCB and Meezan say alerts for digital transactions are free. We couldn’t confirm from HBL’s schedule whether its digital-transaction alerts are listed as free.

What about JazzCash, NayaPay and SadaPay?

We only found ATM and transfer fees for these apps on third-party blogs, not in their own published schedules for this period, so we’ve left them out. For NayaPay and SadaPay’s own fee schedules, see NayaPay vs SadaPay.

We also couldn’t confirm how the Rs 35 ATM fee is split between the bank that owns the ATM and 1LINK, so we don’t state it.

More guides: best bank in Pakistan, Raast, Banking & Payments, Money.