Pakistan Gift Scheme car imports reached 2,238 vehicles in September 2026, according to figures attributed to the Pakistan Automotive Manufacturers Association.
In May the same figure was seven. The association wants the scheme's checks and monitoring looked at again.
The number is being reported as a surge. Look at every month and it is something more interesting than that.
One month in the middle fell by a quarter. And the jump begins in a particular month, for a reason nobody is mentioning.
The Monthly Figures
Here is the full series, with each month compared against the one before it.
| Month, 2026 | Vehicles | Change on previous month |
|---|---|---|
| May | 7 | — |
| June | 806 | About 115 times higher |
| July | 1,876 | Up about 133% |
| August | 1,406 | Down about 25% |
| September | 2,238 | Up about 59% |
Figures as attributed to PAMA in October 2026 reporting. We could not reach the association's own publication to verify them. The percentage changes are our arithmetic.
Across those five months that is 6,333 vehicles in total, or about 1,267 a month on average.
It Is Not a Steady Rise
Read the right-hand column and the word "surge" starts to look loose.
July was the high point of the middle of the series, at 1,876. Then August fell to 1,406, a drop of about a quarter.
September then rose 59% to set a new high. So the pattern is up, up, sharply down, up again.
That matters when people argue about what the numbers mean. A steady climb suggests a route being worked systematically.
A line that falls 25% in a month looks more like ordinary volatility in a small, lumpy flow of shipments. Five data points cannot tell you which.
The Jump Starts in One Particular Month
Now the most important thing in this story, and it is sitting in the first two rows.
May was seven vehicles. June was 806. That is roughly 115 times higher, in a single month.
Nothing about human behaviour changes that fast. A jump like that almost always means a rule changed.
And one was reported to have changed. Coverage from June 2026 reported that Pakistan's used-car import rules were temporarily relaxed.
We could not open the official notification to confirm that, so we put it no stronger than this. The volume rises in the same month a relaxation was reported.
If those two things are connected, the figures are not evidence of a scheme being abused. They are the arithmetic of a door being opened wider.
Why the 98% Share Is Partly Arithmetic
PAMA is reported as saying the gift scheme accounted for about 98% of all used-vehicle imports in September.
On that basis everything else combined came to roughly 46 vehicles. It sounds damning.
But remember what happened in January. The personal baggage route was reported to have been removed.
Close one of the doors and the remaining door's share has to rise. That happens even if the number of people walking through does not change at all.
A larger share of fewer routes is not the same thing as more abuse. The share figure and the volume figure are telling you different things, and only one of them is about behaviour.
What PAMA Is Asking For
The association's request is narrower than the headlines suggest, and it is reasonable on its own terms.
It wants the government to review how the scheme is run. Specifically, its certification, verification and monitoring procedures.
Its concern is that a route meant for families gifting a car is being used for commercial vehicle trading instead.
That is a question about process, and better verification is hard to argue against whatever your view on imports.
One piece of context belongs here. PAMA represents local manufacturers, who compete directly with imported cars. That does not make the request wrong. It is simply who is making it.
What These Numbers Do Not Show
This part needs saying clearly, because import figures get read as accusations.
A volume figure cannot establish that anybody broke a rule. It tells you how many cars arrived, and nothing about why.
Everyone importing under the scheme may have met every condition. The figures are equally consistent with that.
We also found no government finding of misuse, and the association's statement is a request for review rather than a complaint about named parties.
So treat the data as a fact about volume. Treat the misuse concern as an argument, which is what it is.
What Has Not Been Decided
No change has been announced in response to this request.
That matters if you are planning to import a car. The rules that apply are whatever the current notification says, not what an association has asked for.
And those rules have moved more than once this year, which is why a dated written confirmation is worth having.
Check the position with the Ministry of Commerce and the Federal Board of Revenue on the day you apply.
Do not rely on this article, or any article, for the legal position. We could not open the current notification ourselves.
Final Thoughts
The headline figure is real and it is large. Going from seven vehicles a month to well over two thousand in four months is a genuine shift. It is fair for local manufacturers to want the process checked.
But two details change how you should read it. The series is not a smooth climb, because August dropped sharply before September recovered. And the whole rise starts in June, the same month a relaxation of import rules was reported. That is a far simpler explanation than widespread abuse.
The 98% share deserves the same care. With one import route closed in January, the surviving route's share was always going to rise. That is arithmetic, not evidence.
If you are importing a car, verify the current rules with the government directly and keep a dated copy. We are based in Multan and will tell you honestly when we have nothing exact-fit for an imported model.
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