What Happens When Export Money Reaches Pakistan Late: SBP's Para 33A Exchange Rate Rule
Export money that arrives after the prescribed period can be paid at a lower SBP rate. See Para 33A, a worked example, the 180 day exception and who decides.
If your export money reaches a Pakistani bank after the prescribed period, your bank may pay you at the older, lower State Bank rate. Since 1 March 2023, if the rate on the day the money arrives is higher than the rate on the last due day, the bank pays you the due-day rate and holds the difference. The State Bank (SBP) then decides whether you get it back.
The rule is Para 33A of Chapter 12 (Exports) of the SBP Foreign Exchange Manual. SBP added it by FE Circular No. 01 of 2023, dated 13 February 2023. We also read EPD Circular Letter No. 05 of 2022, which allows a longer period of 180 days on conditions. We could not open the current consolidated Chapter 12, so the base deadline in Para 6 is not confirmed here.
Para 33A applies when money arrives after the prescribed period
The rule covers export proceeds, fully or partly, that are realized after the period set in Para 6 of Chapter 12. Your bank, the authorized dealer, compares two SBP rates when it converts the money into rupees: the weighted average buying rate on the day of realization and the rate on the last day of the allowed period.
Call them Rate A and Rate B. Rate A is the rate on the day the money arrives. Rate B is the rate on the last day of the prescribed period, plus any grace period. If Rate A is higher than Rate B, the bank converts at Rate A but pays you at Rate B.
The difference sits in a separate account at the bank. It does not go to the bank or to SBP automatically. Which of the two gets it is decided later, as the steps below show.
An example shows how much a delay can cost
The numbers below are invented to show the method. They are not real SBP rates. Suppose Rate B was Rs 280 per US dollar on the last due day, and Rate A was Rs 283 when USD 10,000 arrived 30 days late.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Money converted at Rate A (Rs 283) | Rs 2,830,000 |
| Money paid to the exporter at Rate B (Rs 280) | Rs 2,800,000 |
| Difference held in the bank's separate account | Rs 30,000 |
The procedure applies only when Rate A is higher than Rate B. The held difference is also not a fine in itself. It is held until SBP's adjudication office decides what happens.
What happens to the held difference
The bank reports all such differences to SBP weekly. SBP's Foreign Exchange Operations Department then files a complaint with the Foreign Exchange Adjudication Department about the delay. The bank deposits the amount with SBP or refunds it to the exporter, whichever the adjudication department decides.
- The money arrives late and the bank checks Rate A against Rate B.
- If Rate A is higher, you are paid at Rate B and the difference is held.
- The bank sends a weekly statement of such differences to SBP.
- SBP files a complaint about the delay with its adjudication department.
- The department decides: the bank deposits the amount with SBP or refunds you.
Keep your shipping papers, your buyer's correspondence and proof of why payment slipped. We did not find a stated appeal route in the circular, so ask your bank how a hearing works.
The 180 day exception needs a forward sale
An exception lets full export value arrive up to 180 days after shipment. The exporter must discount the export bills or receivables and sell them forward to the authorized dealer before shipment, or within 14 days of shipment. SBP added this in February 2022 to encourage exporters.
Reports in 2022 said the general period had been cut from 180 to 120 days, which is why the exception mattered. We could not confirm the 120 day figure on SBP's own page, so ask your bank for the period that applies to your contract before you ship.
The Para 33A rate rule does not apply to export bills or receivables that the exporter has discounted with the bank. So a discounted bill avoids the rate comparison. That is a reason to talk to the bank before shipment, not after.
Transition rules decided old cases
The circular also had a transition table. For a bill overdue before 28 February 2023 and paid on or before that date, the payment rate was the rate on the day of realization. For a bill overdue by 28 February 2023 but paid on or after 1 March 2023, it was the lower of the realization-day rate and the 1 March rate. For bills that became overdue after 1 March 2023, it is the lower of the realization-day rate and the rate on the day the bill became overdue. New exports follow that last line.
If you export through an EFS toll arrangement, the same overdue rules apply, as we explain for toll manufacturing under EFS. If you export under the 1% or 2% rebate scheme, see how to claim the PRIE rebate. And if you are new to exporting, register as an exporter on WeBOC and TDAP first.
Common questions about late export proceeds
What is Para 33A of the SBP Foreign Exchange Manual?
It is the rule that sets the exchange rate for export money realized after the prescribed period. The bank compares the realization-day rate with the last-due-day rate and pays you the lower one.
When did the late realization rule start?
It took effect on 1 March 2023, under FE Circular No. 01 of 2023 dated 13 February 2023.
Who decides if I get the held difference back?
SBP's Foreign Exchange Adjudication Department decides. The bank deposits the amount with SBP or refunds it to you according to that decision.
Does the rule apply to discounted export bills?
No. The circular says the instructions do not apply to export bills or receivables that the exporter has discounted with the authorized dealer.
Can export money arrive 180 days after shipment?
Yes, on one condition. You must discount the bills and sell them forward to your authorized dealer before shipment, or within 14 days of shipment.
How we verified this
What we checked, where we read it, and what we could not confirm.
Last checked 14 October 2026. The rule text is from FE Circular No. 01 of 2023 and EPD Circular Letter No. 05 of 2022, both read in the SBP circulars archive. We could not open the current Chapter 12 of the Foreign Exchange Manual, so the base period in Para 6, and any change after 2023, are not confirmed. The 120 day figure is reported, not read at source. Ask your authorized dealer before you rely on any period. The latest circulars are at sbp.org.pk/circulars.
About the author
Senior Writer, Public Services and Technology
Shahid joined us in 2024 as an author. He is a senior contributor to Pakistan's leading technology websites. He writes detailed articles, mostly covering his expertise in the latest tech, mobiles, apps, gadgets, and step-by-step guides. His ideology is to help people understand the latest trends and explain complex methods through very easy-to-understand guides.
