How to Get a Missing PSX Dividend in Pakistan: Paid in 15 Working Days, Claim Before 3 Years
Listed companies must pay dividends into your bank in 15 working days. Check your CDS IBAN, contact the registrar and claim unpaid dividends before 3 years end.
Short answer: A listed company in Pakistan must pay a cash dividend straight into the bank account linked to your shares within 15 working days of declaring it. If it has not arrived, check the IBAN on your CDS account, then contact the company's share registrar. A dividend left unclaimed for three years is sent to the Federal Government after a 90 day notice, so claim it before then.
Dividends go missing more often than people think, usually because of an old bank account or a changed address. We read the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) shareholders' rights guide, which quotes the Companies Act, 2017, and two unclaimed dividend notices that listed companies filed with PSX in August and September 2026. This is what the law and those notices say you can do.
Companies must pay within 15 working days, into your bank account
Under section 242 of the Companies Act, 2017, a listed company can pay a cash dividend only electronically, into the bank account the shareholder has designated. Section 243 makes the chief executive responsible for paying it within 15 working days of the date it is declared.
So there are no cheques or warrants for listed shares any more. If your bank details are missing or wrong, the money cannot be sent and stays with the company as unpaid. That is the single most common reason a shareholder gets nothing.
| Rule | What it says | Where |
|---|---|---|
| How it is paid | Only electronically, into the shareholder's designated bank account | Section 242 |
| When it is paid | Within 15 working days of declaration | Section 243 |
| Who declares it | Board for an interim dividend, general meeting for a final one | Sections 183 and 240 |
| If unclaimed | After 3 years, 90 day notice, then sent to the Federal Government | Section 244 |
Interim dividends are declared by the board. Final dividends are recommended by the board and approved at the annual general meeting, and the meeting cannot approve more than the board recommended.
Your IBAN on the CDS account decides where the money goes
For shares held in a Central Depository System (CDS) account, the dividend goes to the 24 digit IBAN recorded on that account. Companies' own claim forms tell shareholders to update the IBAN through their broker, participant or CDC Investor Account Services.
If you opened a brokerage account years ago and later closed that bank account, the IBAN on file may be dead. Ask your broker for a "posted account report" of your CDS account. It shows the IBAN the system holds. If it is wrong or blank, ask the broker to update it before the next dividend.
New investors who opened a PSX Sahulat account recently should still check, because the bank detail is entered once and then forgotten. If a broker refuses or delays the change, the route to complain against a stockbroker applies.
Tax and zakat come off before the dividend reaches you
A smaller dividend than you expected is not always a missing payment. The company deducts income tax before paying: 15 per cent for filers and 30 per cent for non-filers on most shares. Zakat may also be cut from the dividend.
So a Rs 10,000 dividend becomes Rs 8,500 for a filer and Rs 7,000 for a non-filer, before any zakat. The full set of rates, including power companies and mutual funds, is in dividend tax in Pakistan. Your company or registrar can give you a dividend slip showing the gross amount and every deduction.
Follow six steps if a dividend has not arrived
Start with the dates, then the bank detail, then the registrar. Most cases end at step four. Keep copies of everything you send, because the same papers are needed if you later escalate.
- Find the declaration date in the company's announcement on the PSX data portal.
- Count 15 working days from that date. Before then, the payment is not late.
- Check your bank statement for a credit from the company or its registrar.
- Ask your broker for the posted CDS account report and confirm the IBAN.
- Write to the company's share registrar with your CNIC, CDS account number and IBAN.
- If there is no answer, write to the company secretary, then take it to the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP).
The registrar's name and address are printed in the company's annual report and its notices. Many listed companies use CDC Share Registrar Services, which gives its helpline as 0800-CDCPL (23275) in company notices. Check the notice of your own company, because not every company uses the same registrar.
Unclaimed dividends go to the government after three years
Section 244 says a dividend unpaid for three years from the date it became due must go to the Federal Government. First the company sends you a 90 day notice. Then it publishes a final notice in newspapers. If you still do not claim, it deposits the money, and unclaimed shares go to the SECP.
This is happening now. Adamjee Life Assurance told PSX on 1 September 2026 that it had couriered 90 day notices to shareholders with dividends unclaimed for three years. Pakistan State Oil filed a final notice dated 29 August 2026, giving shareholders 90 more days from publication on 30 August.
To claim, the forms in these notices ask for the following:
- Your folio or CDS account number, name as on CNIC, father's or husband's name and address.
- A 24 digit IBAN, which the forms mark as mandatory.
- A posted CDS account report showing that IBAN.
- A copy of your CNIC or passport.
- For a deceased shareholder, attested succession and death certificates. The dividend is paid after the shares move to the legal heirs.
Companies also list unclaimed dividends on their own websites, so search your name on the site of any company you held shares in. Money left idle in a bank is handled under a different law, explained in how to claim an unclaimed bank deposit.
Common questions about missing dividends
How long does a company have to pay a dividend?
15 working days from the date the dividend is declared, under section 243 of the Companies Act, 2017.
Can a listed company pay my dividend by cheque?
No. Section 242 says a listed company pays cash dividends only electronically, into the bank account the shareholder designates.
Why is my dividend less than the declared amount?
Income tax is deducted first, 15 per cent for filers and 30 per cent for non-filers on most shares, and zakat may also be cut.
What happens to a dividend I never claimed?
After three years the company sends a 90 day notice, then a final newspaper notice, and then deposits it with the Federal Government under section 244.
Can heirs claim a dead shareholder's dividend?
Yes. The claim forms we read ask for attested succession and death certificates, and pay after the shares are transferred to the legal heirs.
How we verified this
What we checked, where we read it, and what we could not confirm.
Last checked 20 October 2026. We read sections 183, 240, 242 and 243 of the Companies Act, 2017, as quoted in the PSX shareholders' rights guide. Section 244 and the claim documents come from two unclaimed dividend notices filed on the PSX data portal, by Adamjee Life Assurance on 1 September 2026 and Pakistan State Oil on 28 August 2026. We did not read section 244 in the Act itself, because the SECP website did not load for us on 20 October, so the wording here follows the companies' notices. The tax example is from our dividend tax figures, read from the Income Tax Ordinance on 7 October 2026.
About the author
Global Affairs & Political Economy Writer
Muhammad Hatim is a book lover who started writing because he enjoys it. At Pakistan Era he writes about international relations, geopolitics and the global economy, with a particular interest in South Asia and the forces behind current events.
