How to Apply for the Punjab Kissan Card

Any Punjab farmer with up to 12.5 acres of recorded land can register for the Kissan Card by sending PKC and their CNIC number to 8070. Approved farmers get up to Rs 150,000 a season as an interest-free loan for seed, fertiliser and other inputs, loaded on a card that is only good for buying those things, not for cash.

We read this directly on punjab.gov.pk's own CM Kissan Card Scheme page on 4 October 2026. The card is run by the Punjab Agriculture Department with the Punjab Information Technology Board, and it is still active this year, with reported additions like a diesel subsidy and wheat support payments now also moving through the same card.

Who qualifies for the Punjab Kissan Card

You need up to 12.5 acres of land that already shows in the Punjab Land Record Authority's system, a mobile SIM registered against your own CNIC, and a clean record with no bank or microfinance default against your name.

If your land is still in a parent's or grandparent's name, this scheme is not the place to fix that. Sort the inheritance mutation first, because PLRA has to show the land against your own CNIC before the card can be linked to it.

How to apply for the Kissan Card

Registration starts with a single text message. There is no office visit, no form and no fee to send it, and the government's own page gives this as the entire first step.

1. Open the messaging app on the phone registered to your CNIC.
2. Type PKC, leave one space, then type your 13-digit CNIC number.
3. Send the message to 8070.
4. Wait for a confirmation reply on eligibility.
5. Visit your designated bank branch once approved to collect the card.

Do not type dashes or spaces inside the CNIC number itself. A wrongly formatted message is the most common reason a farmer gets no reply at all.

What the loan actually covers

The loan is interest-free and runs from sowing to harvest, up to Rs 150,000 a season at a rate of Rs 30,000 for every acre, capped at five acres of benefit even if your holding is larger. It can only be spent on things like fertiliser and seed.

That grace period matters. If the loan is not settled within the six months plus the extra month, you risk being treated as a defaulter on your next season's application, so settle it as soon as the harvest is sold rather than waiting for a reminder.

Where the first rollout fell short

The scheme's own page describes an initial target of 500,000 farmers on a first-come, first-served basis, costing an estimated Rs 9.5 billion for the season. That is a cap, not an unlimited fund, and a late registration in a busy sowing window can miss the cycle entirely.

We found, through more recent coverage rather than the government page itself, that Punjab has since routed other support through the same card, including a reported fuel relief for farm machinery and wheat support payments. We cannot confirm the figures on those from an official page, so we are not printing them here as fact, only noting that the card is being used for more than the original input loan.

What can go wrong with your application

Most rejections trace back to one of three things: a SIM registered to someone else, land that is not yet recorded under your own CNIC in PLRA, or an existing default on a separate loan.

• Check your SIM's registered CNIC before you send the message, since a shared family SIM will not work.
• Confirm your land mutation is complete and recorded against your own name, not a deceased relative's.
• Clear or dispute any old loan default before applying, since it rules you out automatically.
• Keep the confirmation SMS until the card is actually issued at the bank.

A farmer sharing a joint holding with siblings should check which of them is listed in PLRA before assuming the card will go through on a family's general understanding of who owns what.

Common questions

How do I apply for the Punjab Kissan Card?

Send PKC followed by your 13-digit CNIC number to 8070 from the phone registered to that CNIC. The government's page describes this as the entire registration step.

How much can I borrow on the Kissan Card?

Up to Rs 150,000 a season, calculated at Rs 30,000 per acre and capped at five acres of benefit, even on a larger holding.

Is the Kissan Card loan interest-free?

Yes. The government's page describes it as an interest-free loan running from sowing to harvest, repaid within the card's validity.

Can I use the Kissan Card for cash?

No. The funds are restricted to agricultural inputs such as fertiliser and seed, not a cash withdrawal facility.

What land size qualifies for the Kissan Card?

Up to 12.5 acres, and the land must already be recorded in the Punjab Land Record Authority's system under your own CNIC.

Is the Punjab Kissan Card still active in 2026?

Yes. We confirmed the scheme's own government page is current, and separate reporting shows other subsidies being added onto the same card through the year.

How we verified this

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

Last checked on 4 October 2026. Eligibility, the SMS registration step, the loan rate and cap, card validity and the original rollout figures are read directly on punjab.gov.pk's CM Kissan Card Scheme page. The continued activity of the scheme into 2026, and the diesel and wheat-support additions, are drawn from press coverage rather than a government page and are described here as reported rather than confirmed figures.