Apply for the Punjab Parwaaz Card: Interest-Free Loan to Work Abroad

Short answer: the Punjab Parwaaz Card gives an interest-free loan to pay the costs of going abroad for a job: medical tests, visa and protector fees, air tickets, skill tests and the recruiting agent's fee. You need a job offer from a foreign employer paying less than SAR 5,000 a month, a valid CNIC, Punjab residence and an age of 18 or more. Apply at parwaaz.psdf.org.pk, then finish the loan at a Bank of Punjab branch.

We read the Punjab government's Parwaaz Card page, the Punjab Skills Development Fund (PSDF) programme page and the application portal on 9 October 2026. The official name is the Maryam Nawaz Hunarmand Naujawan Parwaaz Card. Below is what those pages say, what they leave out, and the order to do things in so the loan does not stall.

The Parwaaz Card pays pre-departure costs for a confirmed overseas job

The Parwaaz Card is an interest-free loan for Punjab residents who already hold a foreign job offer. It covers the money you must spend before you fly: medical, visa processing, protector fee, air ticket, skill verification test and the Overseas Employment Promoter's fee. You repay it in monthly instalments.

An Overseas Employment Promoter, or OEP, is a licensed recruiting agent. Many Gulf jobs come through one. The Punjab page names the OEP fee as a cost the loan can cover, which matters, because that fee is often the biggest single bill.

The scheme is run by PSDF, a Punjab government company that funds skills training. The bank side is handled by the Bank of Punjab. The portal describes the loan as interest free with "easy monthly installments", but it does not publish the repayment period.

Six conditions decide who can apply for the Parwaaz Card

You qualify if you are 18 or older, hold a valid CNIC, live in Punjab and have a job offer letter from a foreign employer. The offered salary must be below SAR 5,000 a month. Men and women can both apply, and skilled, semi-skilled and unskilled workers are all included.

SAR 5,000 is a Saudi riyal figure. For a job in another country, the salary has to be below the same value in that currency. The cap keeps the loan for lower-paid workers. A nurse or engineer on a bigger package will usually not qualify.

PSDF lists the main sectors as construction, healthcare, hospitality, logistics and manufacturing, plus "others".

Apply in five steps, from the portal to the Bank of Punjab

Register on parwaaz.psdf.org.pk as a Job Holder, upload your offer letter, medical and skill certificates, and wait for PSDF to accept you. Then apply for the loan at a designated Bank of Punjab branch. The bank releases 20 per cent first.

1. Register on the portal. Open parwaaz.psdf.org.pk and choose Job Holder if you already have an offer. You can apply yourself or through a registered OEP.
2. Upload the first documents. PSDF asks for the job offer letter, a medical certificate and a skill verification certificate.
3. Wait for PSDF's decision. PSDF reviews the file and accepts or rejects it.
4. Apply for the loan at the bank. Visit the designated Bank of Punjab branch. After approval you can use 20 per cent of the loan amount.
5. Pay the rest directly and upload receipts. The other 80 per cent goes on visa stamping, visa fees, OEP charges and air tickets. Upload each receipt to the portal.

PSDF also gives compulsory pre-departure training in soft skills, cultural orientation and financial literacy before you leave. Plan for it in your dates. A flight booked too early can clash with it.

No job offer yet means applying as a Job Seeker first

If you do not have an offer, the portal has a separate Job Seeker route. It shows overseas openings from registered OEPs. Once an employer offers you a job, your status changes to Job Holder and you can apply for the loan.

This is the slower path, and it depends on the agents listed there. Before you deal with any agent, look up whether the agency is licensed with the Bureau of Emigration. A licence check takes a few minutes, and you can check an overseas job agency by name or licence number. The Parwaaz portal itself says its OEPs are registered with it. That is a useful filter, but it is not the same as a government licence, so check both.

The federal route through OEC is another option. It is the government's own recruiter, and Saudi and Gulf jobs through OEC do not involve a private agent at all.

The loan limit and repayment period are not published

Neither official page states the maximum loan or how many months you get to repay. A figure of up to Rs 1 million has been reported, and so has a processing time of 7 to 10 working days, but we could not find either on a government page.

So treat Rs 1 million as reported, not confirmed. Ask the Bank of Punjab branch for the limit, the instalment and the repayment period in writing before you sign. Also ask what happens if your visa is refused after part of the money has been spent.

Here is what is confirmed and what is not, as of 9 October 2026:

Fake Parwaaz Card sites ask for fees the scheme does not charge

Search results for "Parwaz Card" are full of lookalike sites with similar names. The only portal named by the Punjab government is parwaaz.psdf.org.pk. Nobody needs to pay a registration fee to apply there, and no official page mentions one.

The spelling trips people up. The government writes it "Parwaaz" with a double a. Sites using "parwaz" or adding "card" to the domain are not run by PSDF. Do not enter your CNIC or bank details on them.

The OEP fee is also capped by law. Agents can charge only a set amount, and you can read the Rs 15,000 limit on overseas job agents before you agree to anything. A loan does not make an illegal fee legal.

Prepare these papers before you open the portal

Keep your CNIC, the signed job offer letter, a medical certificate from an approved centre and a skill verification certificate ready as clear scans. The protector stamp and air ticket come later and are paid from the 80 per cent share.

• CNIC, front and back.
• Job offer letter showing the employer, the job and the monthly salary.
• Medical certificate. For Gulf jobs you can check your Gulf medical report by passport number before uploading.
• Skill verification certificate. Saudi jobs often need the Takamol skill test.
• A mobile number registered in your own name.

Last, you will need emigrant protection before you fly. The Protector of Emigrants process is the step the protector fee pays for.

Common questions

Is the Parwaaz Card loan really interest free?

Yes. Both the Punjab government page and the PSDF page describe it as an interest-free loan repaid in monthly instalments. Confirm any processing charges with the Bank of Punjab before signing.

How much loan can I get from the Parwaaz Card?

No official page states a limit. Up to Rs 1 million has been reported. Ask the Bank of Punjab branch for the exact limit in writing.

Can I apply without a job offer?

You can register as a Job Seeker and look at openings from registered agents. The loan itself needs a job offer, so you must become a Job Holder first.

Can people from Sindh or Khyber Pakhtunkhwa apply?

No. The scheme is for Punjab residents only.

Which salary is too high for the Parwaaz Card?

A job paying SAR 5,000 a month or more, or the same value in another currency, does not qualify.

Do I pay the visa and ticket myself?

Partly. You get 20 per cent of the loan first. The other 80 per cent pays visa stamping, visa fees, OEP charges and tickets directly, and you upload the receipts.

How we verified this

What we checked, where we read it, and what we could not confirm.

Last checked on 9 October 2026 at 07:00 PKT. We read the Punjab government's Hunarmand Naujawan Parwaaz Card page on punjab.gov.pk, the PSDF Parwaaz Card page on psdf.org.pk and the portal at parwaaz.psdf.org.pk. We did not submit an application. The loan limit, repayment period and processing time are not on those pages, so they are marked as reported.