How to Get a Premium Number Plate in Sindh Through the Excise Auction

Sindh sells premium and choice vehicle numbers through an online auction run by the Excise, Taxation and Narcotics Control Department at premiumnumber.excise.gos.pk and in the Excise Sindh app. You register with your CNIC, bid, and the highest offer wins. Winners pay the balance by 4 pm the next working day unless the auction sets another time.

We read the auction portal's terms, refund and delivery policies and its sign up form on 3 October 2026. We also read the Excise Sindh app's version history, which shows how the bidding screens work. We did not register or bid, so the live list of numbers on offer and its reserve prices were not visible to us.

Punjab publishes its starting prices and charges a non-refundable entry fee. Sindh's public pages show neither, so the price is simply whatever the last bidder pays.

How the Sindh premium number system works

Sindh Excise releases batches of premium numbers from time to time. Registered users bid online or at designated centres, and the highest accepted offer wins. The portal says the money raised goes to flood affectees.

The portal calls it the "Sindh Premium Number Allocation System". In its own words, numbers with "unique patterns or sequential arrangements" are "made available to the public periodically". Bidders "compete by offering increasing amounts, with the highest financial offer securing the number."

The department has not published category prices on any page we could open. The cabinet approval in May 2024 was reported with three tiers, and those base prices are still the ones repeated today. Treat them as reported, not as an official price list.

The first auction, in June 2024, was reported to have raised Rs 675.4 million from 40 numbers. The department's own site does not carry that figure.

Register on the Sindh premium number portal

Registration is free and open to anyone over 18. You give your full name, email, mobile number, CNIC, province, city and address, set a password and confirm your email. The form accepts residents of Punjab, KP and Balochistan as well as Sindh.

1. Open premiumnumber.excise.gos.pk and choose "Register an Account".
2. Enter your full name, email address and mobile number in the 03XXXXXXXXX format.
3. Enter your CNIC, then pick your province and city. The city box takes letters only.
4. Add your address. Plates are delivered to the address you give, so make it a real one.
5. Set a password, type the captcha and click Register.
6. Open the link in your email to verify the account, then log in.

The terms say every bidder must give a name, address and "satisfactory proof of identity" before bidding. The department can reject any registration without giving a reason.

A small warning. The terms box inside the sign up form shows placeholder dummy text. The real conditions are on a separate terms page, which is what we quote here.

How the bidding works, and the 10 minute rule

Each auction runs to a closing time, but any bid placed in the last ten minutes adds ten more minutes. That keeps repeating until nobody bids. A bid cannot be taken back without the auctioneer's consent, and numbers may carry a hidden reserve price.

The terms call this "auto bid extension". There is no point waiting for the final second, because somebody can always answer you and the clock simply moves.

• Reserve price. Any number may have one. If bids stay below it, the department may accept, reject or make a counter offer.
• No retraction. "No Bid shall be retracted without the consent of the Auctioneer."
• Rejection. The auctioneer may reject any bid without a reason.
• Changes. An auction can be postponed, cancelled or extended without notice.

The app has some useful extras. Since October 2024 it shows an offer expiry timer, lets you cancel a participation registration, and lets anyone view all offers on premium numbers without registering. That last one is the easy way to look at prices before you commit.

Paying after you win a premium number

A winner may be asked for a deposit of up to 25 per cent at once. The balance is due by the catalogue time, or 4 pm on the next working day. Miss it and the department can cancel the sale and keep the deposit.

The invoice arrives by email after the auction closes. Cash may be refused under money laundering rules, and payment is only accepted from the buyer or an authorised agent.

KIBOR is the Karachi Interbank Offered Rate, the base rate banks lend to each other at. If a resale brings less than your price, the terms say the defaulting buyer pays the difference too. So do not bid on a number you cannot pay for the next day.

Once it is paid, the app has an option to tag the winning number to a vehicle. The 2024 announcement said premium numbers would be held against your CNIC and could move between your vehicles, but we did not find that rule on a department page.

Refunds if you lose the auction

A security deposit is refunded within 15 days of the posted end date if you did not win anything. You cannot ask for it before the end date. Card payments come back as a Sindh Bank cheque, and pay orders are returned.

That cheque detail catches people out: a card payment is not refunded to the card. Keep your account address current.

We could not find the amount of the security deposit on any page we could reach without logging in. It may vary by number or by category.

Sindh and Punjab choice numbers compared

Both provinces auction choice numbers online. Punjab publishes starting prices, such as Rs 500,000 for a Gold vanity plate, and keeps a Rs 5,000 or Rs 10,000 entry fee. Sindh publishes no price list and refunds the deposit if you lose.

Punjab's system, with its own dates and price tiers, is explained under vanity number plates in Punjab. A premium number does not change your tax. Normal Sindh token tax still applies, and buying a used car with a special number still needs a normal vehicle transfer in Sindh.

Common questions

Where do I apply for a premium number plate in Sindh?

At premiumnumber.excise.gos.pk or in the Excise Sindh app on Android and iPhone. Both are run by the Sindh Excise, Taxation and Narcotics Control Department.

What is the price of a premium number plate in Sindh?

There is no fixed price, because numbers are auctioned. Reported base prices are Rs 2 million for Platinum, Rs 1 million for Gold and Rs 50,000 for Silver, but the department has not published them on its site.

Can people outside Sindh bid?

The sign up form accepts addresses in Punjab, KP and Balochistan. The number is a Sindh registration, so it is only useful on a vehicle registered in Sindh.

When is the next Sindh premium number auction?

The department releases numbers periodically and announces them through the portal and the app. The app's offer list, visible without registering, is the quickest place to check.

How long does delivery take after winning?

The delivery policy says the plate goes to your registered address within 15 days of the auction's end date, once you have paid in full.

Will I get my deposit back if I lose?

Yes, within 15 days of the posted end date. Card payments are refunded by a Sindh Bank cheque.

How we verified this

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

Last checked on 3 October 2026. The allocation system, the flood affectees purpose, the sign up fields, the 18 and over rule, reserve prices, the 10 minute auto extension, the 25 per cent deposit, payment by 4 pm on the next working day, the KIBOR interest and forfeiture are read on the Sindh Excise premium number portal and its terms and conditions. The refund and delivery rules are read in its refund and delivery policies. The offer timer, participation cancellation, open offer list and vehicle tagging are read in the Excise Sindh app's version history. The category names, base prices and the 2024 auction total are reported only. We did not register, bid or see a live offer list.