Azam & Rai obtains approval for a Class License for Value Added Services from the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority for Singapore telecoms company

Sector: Telecommunications Laws
Azam & Rai has obtained approval of a Class License for Value Added Services (VAS) from the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) for the Pakistani subsidiary of a Singapore Stock Exchange-listed telecommunications company headquartered in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The license approval enables the client to provide VAS to a major telecom company providing mobile telecom services in Pakistan.

Securities & Exchange Commission of Pakistan more than doubles Company Registration Fees

Sector: Corporate & Investment Laws
The Securities & Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP), vide its Statutory Regulatory Order (S.R.O.) No. 119(I)/2009 with effect from 6 February 2009, has more than doubled the Company Registration Fees for all ranges of Authorized Capital.

After the said increase, a company with an authorized capital of Rs. 100,000 will be required to pay registration fees of PKR 9,000 instead of the previous PKR 3,300 whereas a company with an authorized capital of PKR 10 Million will be required to pay registration fees of PKR Rs. 108,000 instead of the previous PKR 40,300.

Furthermore, the previous ceiling of PKR 10 Million on company registration fees has been removed and is now unilimited depending on the authorized capital.

The SECP has also increased document filing fees from PKR 200 to PKR 1,000 per document.

This is the first such increase in company registration fees since 9 December 2003 and will increase the cost of doing business in Pakistan.