How to Register a Shop With the Punjab Labour Department, Free and Online
Punjab shop and office registration with the Labour Department is free and online. See who must register, the two month limit, renewal, inspections and fines.
Registering a shop, restaurant or office with the Punjab Labour Department is free and can be done online through the Punjab Business Registration Portal at register.business.punjab.gov.pk. Apply within two months of opening. The certificate lasts two years, and you must hang it where customers and inspectors can see it.
Labour registration is separate from FBR and from your council licence, and it is the one a shops inspector asks for. We read the law that sets it, the Punjab Shops and Establishments Ordinance 1969, on the Punjab Code site on 6 October 2026. We also opened the registration portal ourselves and checked what it asks for at sign up.
The Punjab Labour Code 2026, passed on 4 February 2026, replaces that Ordinance and raises the fines sharply. The steps are almost the same under both.
Shop registration in Punjab is free and mostly online
Punjab charges no fee to register a shop or establishment with the Labour Department. The old Rs 1,000 fee was removed by an amendment ordinance on 1 June 2018, and a 2023 amendment took the word "fees" out of section 24 entirely.
The Labour and Human Resource Department says free online registration started in January 2018. Its "Register Your Business" link opens the Punjab Business Registration Portal.
Every shop with staff must register, with two exceptions
Section 24 of the 1969 Ordinance says every establishment must register with the Deputy Chief Inspector for its area. Two kinds are left out: a one man shop, and clerical staff working inside a factory. A one man shop is run by the owner or family with no hired employee.
"Establishment" is wide. Section 2 lists shops, offices, restaurants, cafes, hotels, private clinics and healthcare facilities, cinemas, schools, teaching academies, software houses and lawyers' offices. So a bakery with two helpers, a tuition academy with three teachers and a software office with ten staff all need it.
| Your business | Register with Labour Department? |
|---|---|
| Shop run only by you or your family, no hired staff | Not required under the 1969 Ordinance |
| Shop, restaurant or office with one or more employees | Yes, within two months of opening |
| Company formed through SECP with a Punjab office | Yes, and you can tick it during incorporation |
| Establishment with 15 or more workers, under the new Labour Code | Yes, through the area's factory inspector |
The time limit is in section 24(3). A new establishment must apply within two months of setting up.
How to register your shop online, step by step
You need a mobile number, an email address, the owner's CNIC and the business details. We opened the sign up page on 6 October 2026: it asks for a mobile number and email, each typed twice, and emails a code to activate the account.
- Open register.business.punjab.gov.pk and click "New Registration".
- Enter your mobile number and email address, then enter the code sent to your email.
- Log in with the credentials the portal emails to you.
- Choose registration with the Labour Department and fill in the business details: name, address, owner, type of business, date of opening and number of employees.
- Submit the form. There is nothing to pay.
- Once the Deputy Chief Inspector is satisfied the details are correct, your shop is entered in the Register of Establishments (Form B) and you receive the certificate (Form C).
- Print the certificate and display it prominently in the shop.
We did not file a real application, so we cannot confirm approval times. SECP's own ease of doing business page lists labour registration at about 7 days when it runs alongside company incorporation.
A company formed through SECP eServices with a Punjab office can opt for Labour Department, social security and Excise registration in the same application, a link in place since 31 December 2018. A sole proprietor applies on the Punjab portal directly, and handles FBR registration as a sole proprietor as a separate step.
Keep the certificate on display and renew it every two years
Section 24(5) requires the certificate to be displayed prominently at the establishment and renewed every two years, unless the government notifies a different interval. The new Labour Code keeps the two year term and adds a duty to show the certificate on your website too, if you have one.
Set a reminder for 22 months after the issue date, because an expired certificate is no certificate.
Labour registration is also not the same as the trade licence from your local council. Most shops with employees need both.
What a shops inspector checks when they visit
Section 26 lets an inspector enter any establishment at a reasonable time and examine its records. These are the rules the 1969 Ordinance sets.
- Closing time: no establishment may stay open after 8:00 pm, though customers already inside can be served for 30 more minutes. The government can notify other hours.
- Hours board: a board showing your opening hours must be displayed.
- Breaks: no adult may work more than six hours straight without a rest or meal break of at least one hour.
- Weekly holiday: every worker gets one day off a week with no pay cut, and you must tell the inspector which day you close.
- Daily limit: nine hours a day and 48 a week for adults, with overtime at double pay.
- Records and toilets: prescribed registers on demand, and separate clean toilets for men and women.
Paying below the Punjab minimum wage of Rs 40,000 a month is a separate offence. The full list of what your staff are owed is in what a shop worker in Punjab is owed by law.
Fines for not registering are rising under the new Labour Code
Under the 1969 Ordinance, failing to register falls under section 27(3): a fine of up to Rs 3,000 for a first offence, and up to Rs 5,000 or three months' simple imprisonment, or both, after that.
Section 390 of the Labour Code fines a shop with fewer than 10 workers between half and three "penalty units". One unit is the monthly minimum wage for an unskilled worker, so at Rs 40,000 that is Rs 20,000 to Rs 120,000, by our own calculation.
| Who | 1969 Ordinance | Labour Code 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Shop with fewer than 10 workers | Up to Rs 3,000 (first offence) | Rs 20,000 to Rs 120,000 |
| Establishment with 10 or more workers | Up to Rs 3,000 (first offence) | Rs 80,000 to Rs 400,000 |
Whether the Labour Code is in force yet
The Code was assented to by the Governor and published in the Punjab Gazette on 10 February 2026. Section 1(3) says it comes into force on a date the government notifies in the Gazette. We did not find that notification on the Punjab Code site, which still lists the 1969 Ordinance. The Labour Department's Acts page now lists only the Code. Reports differ on whether it has started.
The practical answer is the same either way: register within two months and keep the certificate current. Section 435 of the Code says registrations made under the old law carry over.
Common questions
Is there a fee to register a shop with the Punjab Labour Department?
No. The Rs 1,000 fee was removed in June 2018, and the law no longer mentions a registration fee.
Does a one man shop need labour registration in Punjab?
Not under the 1969 Ordinance, if only you or your family work there. Once you hire one employee, you must register within two months.
How long is the registration certificate valid?
Two years from the date it is issued.
Is labour registration the same as a trade licence or an NTN?
No. The trade licence comes from your local council and the NTN from FBR. Labour registration is a third, separate certificate.
Can I register a restaurant or office, not just a shop?
Yes. Restaurants, hotels, offices and other commercial premises are establishments under the law and register the same way.
How we verified this
What we checked, where we read it, and what we could not confirm.
Last checked on 6 October 2026. We read the Punjab Shops and Establishments Ordinance 1969 (VIII of 1969), with amendments to 2023, and the Punjab Labour Code 2026 (IX of 2026), both as published on punjablaws.punjab.gov.pk. We read the "Register Your Business" and "Acts" pages on labour.punjab.gov.pk, opened the sign up page of the Punjab Business Registration Portal, and read SECP's starting a business page. We could not find a Gazette notification starting the Labour Code.
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.
